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Samuel  Stanhope  Smith. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF 
HAMPDEN-SIDNEY 


CALENDAR  OF 
BOARD  MINUTES 

$14 

1776-1876 


By  ALFRED  J.    MORRISON 


RICHMOND,  VA. 

THE  HERMITAGE  PRESS 

1912 


TO 

THE  BOARD  OF   TRUSTEES 

IN  THEIR  CORPORATE 

CAPACITY 


JOHN  HAMPDEN 

i 594-1643. 

Vestigia  Nulla  Retrorsum. 


ALGERNON  SIDNEY 

1 622- 1 683. 

Sanctus  Amor  Patriae  Dat  Animutn. 


PREFACE 


What  are  the  origins  and  the  fortunes  of  any  idea  that  has 
taken  shape?  These  must  be  interesting  questions  always,  and 
not  least  so  in  the  case  of  an  academic  institution  in  a  new 
country.  Southside  Virginia  has  been  a  tobacco  country  from 
the  first.  Who  have  been  those  of  the  region  that  have  been 
formally  identified  with  efforts  looking  to  the  maintenance  of  the 
academic  tradition?  The  following  pages  give  an  answer  for 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  which,  with  William  and  Mary  and 
Washington  and  Lee,  has  survived  in  Virginia  from  a  colonial 
foundation.  Hampden  Sidney  and  Washington  and  Lee,  repre- 
senting the  south  and  the  west  in  the  State,  mark  the  beginnings  of 
the  positive  Revolution ;  the  history  of  William  and  Mary,  stand- 
ing for  the  colony,  is  now  dim  with  the  circumstances  of  age. 
How  have  the  three  fared  since  the  establishment  of  the  Uni- 
versity, and  what  have  been  the  well-devised  plans  for  collegiate 
education  in  the  State?    What  have  been  the  vicissitudes? 

This  Calendar  is  no  brief.  In  it  may  be  found  the  facts  for  a 
hundred  years  of  the  management  by  Trustees  of  one  of  the  old- 
est colleges  in  the  country.  Very  few  of  these  men  are  now 
living,  but  the  College  exists  no  one  can  say  how  much  because 
they  gave  it  their  oversight.  The  history  of  an  institution,  even 
if  complete  as  histories  go,  would  be  but  a  partial  record:  the 
forces  making  to  that  result  are  so  numerous  and  involved  that 
a  state  of  mind  may  easily  be  brought  about. quite  antagonistic 
to  the  drawing  up  of  any  rational  account  of  past  conditions. 
Action  is  the  thing,  and  if  a  register  of  current  acts  is  kept,  little 
more  can  be  expected.  And  yet  acts  are  related,  often  springing 
one  out  of  another,  and  it  is  desirable  to  trace  the  process.  It  is 
not  certain  that  historical  tastes  and  aptitudes  mean  decadence  in 
the  community — it  is  possible  that  the  community  is  taking  on 
new  life  in  several  ways  including  the  historical.  At  no  time 
has  there  been  any  lack  of  subjects  for  research  in  history,  but 
it  is  interesting  to  observe  the  forming  of  solidarities  out  of 
which  grows  the  historical  feeling  in  specific  directions. 

This  is  a  Calendar  covering  fifty  years  of  the  Old  College  and 
fifty  years  of  the  New  College  of  Hampden  Sidney. 


PORTRAITS   OF   TRUSTEES 


1.  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith.     Portrait  by  C.  Lawrence. 

2.  John  Blair  Smith.    Portrait  owned  by  Union  College,  N.  Y.      '*    *   ^. 

3.  James  Madison.     Medallion  by  Ceracchi,  1793. 

4.  Thomas    Read.      Portrait    reproduced    by    courtesy    of    Miss    Eliza- 

beth Venable,  Jacksonville,  Florida. 

5.  Patrick   Henry.     Engraving  by  Woodcock. 

6.  Samuel    W.    Venable.      Portrait    owned    by    Mrs.    Charles    Martin, 

Rivermont,  Lynchburg,  Va. 

7.  Abram  B.  Venable.     Portrait,  supposed  to  be  by  Rembrandt  Peale, 

owned  by  W.  H.  Venable,  Norfolk,  Va. 

8.  Richard  N.  Venable.    Portrait  owned  by  W.  H.  Venable,  Norfolk,  Va. 

9.  Archibald  Alexander. 

10.  Paul  Carrington,  Jr.    Photograph  of  a  portrait,  by  courtesy  of  Major 

A.  R.  Venable,  Hampden  Sidney,  Va. 

11.  John  Holt  Rice.    Portrait  by  W.  J.  Hubard. 

12.  William  L.  Venable.     Portrait  owned  by  William  G.  Venable,  Sher- 

man, Texas. 

13.  Moses    Hoge.      Portrait,    reproduced    in    General    Catalogue,    Union 

Theological  Seminary,  Va.,   (whereabouts  of  original,  unknown) 

14.  William  H.  Cabell.     Engraving  by  St.  Memin. 

15.  William  S.  Morton.     Photograph,  by  courtesy  of  W.  S.  Morton,  Rich- 

mond,  Va. 

16.  Jonathan  P.  Cushing.     Portrait,  owned  by  Philanthropic  Society,  pre- 

sented to  the  Society  by  Richard  N.  Venable. 

17.  Henry    E.    Watkins.      Photograph,    by    courtesy    of    Mrs.    Charles 

Martin,   Rivermont,   Lynchburg,   Va. 

18.  Daniel  L.  Carroll.    Drawing  by  A.  Newsam,  engraved  by  P.  S.  Duval. 

19.  William  Maxwell.     Portrait  owned  by  Virginia  Historical  Society. 

20.  William  S.  Plumer.     Engraving  by  A.  H.  Ritchie. 

21.  James  P.  Marshall.     Photograph  of  a  portrait,  by  courtesy  of  Mrs. 

William  Wirt  Henry,  Richmond,  Va. 

22.  David  Comfort.     Photograph,  by  courtesy  of  Dr.  A.  J.  McKelway, 

Washington,  D.  C. 

23.  A.  D.  Dickinson.     Photograph,  by  Courtesy  of  Thomas  H.  Dickinson, 

Prince  Edward  Co.,  Va. 

24.  Lewis  W.   Green.     Plate  by  courtesy  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Richard  Mc- 

Ilwaine,   Richmond,   Va. 

25.  Travis  H.  Epes.     Photograph  of  a  portrait,  by  courtesy  of  Mrs.  J.  S. 

Hardaway,  Sr.,  Nottoway  Co.,  Va. 

26.  Archibald  G.  Mcllwaine.     Photograph,  by  courtesy  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 

Richard  Mcllwaine,  Richmond,  Va. 

27.  Moses  D.  Hoge.     Photograph. 

28.  John  M.  P.  Atkinson.     Photograph. 

29.  William  Wirt  Henry.     Photograph. 

30.  Richard  Mcllwaine.     Photograph. 


NARRATIVE   ORDERED  BY   THE 
BOARD   OF   TRUSTEES1 


1774 

Introduction.  The  cultivation  of  Science  is  ever  esteemed 

an  object  of  great  importance  by  the  wise  and 
good.  They  who  have  turned  their  attention 
to  it  with  the  most  success  are  always  the  most 
anxious  to  promote  it  amongst  others.  That 
liberality  of  sentiment,  that  refinement  of  soul, 
that  capacity  for  public  usefulness,  and  that 
unaffected  morality  and  religion,  which  usually 
accompany  real  knowledge,  are  strong  induce- 
ments to  the  judicious,  to  desire  an  extensive 
diffusion  of  its  salutary  influence. 

The   Presbyterian    Clergy    in   Virginia   have 
uniformly  aimed  at  this  from  their  first  settle- 
ment in  the  country.     In  their  collective  capa- 
city they  are  known  by  the  name  of  the  Pres- 
ThePby.  of  Hanover  bytery  of   Hanover:   they  have  in  general    [a 
anxious  to  promote   good]    share   of   learning,   and   have   the   pro- 
[morality  and   reli-  motion  of  morality  and  religion  much  at  heart. 
slon*'  Engaged  by  such  motives,  they  have  repeatedly 

instituted  and  patronized  Seminaries  of  learn- 
ing in  their  different  circles.    But  the  small  de- 
gree of  influence  which  they  possessed  in  the 
older   country   under  the   establishment  of   an 
But  impeded  by  the   Episcopal  Church,  and  the.  narrowness  of  their 
old  Episcopal  estab-   private  fortunes,  rendered  their  efforts  of  that 
sort  very  feeble  and  no  remarkable  advantage 
was  derived  from  their  small,  local  schools. 
Convinced    of    the    necessity    of    something 
The  design  of  erect-  more  extensive  and  popular,  they  endeavoured 
ing  an  Acad' y  enter-  to  erect  and  promote  by  subscription,  a  public 
tained,  with  the  rea-  Academy;  in  which  the  various  parts  of  Science 
son      lt"  should  be  taught,  and  which  should  render  edu- 

cation more  conveniently  attainable,  in  coun- 
ties remote  from  the  seat  of  Government,  where 

^his  fragment  was  preserved  by  the  late  Dr.  Dame,  Rector  of 
Camden  Parish,  Danville,  whose  executors  deposited  it  some  years  ago  in 
the  College  Library.  Dr.  Dame  was  a  member  of  the  Faculty  of  the 
College   about    1834.  '        '  * 


CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 


1774 

The  firit  attempt  in 
1772 — but  unsuccess- 
ful. The  next  in  the 
year  1774  successful. 


Mr.  SamM  S.  Smith 
a  principal  in  the  af- 
fair. 


His  capacity. 


The  succesi  of  sub- 
scriptions very  great. 


Reflexion  upon  the 
preceding  account. 
Name  of  the  Acad*y 


Journal  of  these  mat- 
ters ordered  to  be 
kept. 


the  College  of  William  and  Mary  had  been  long 
before  established.  In  the  year  1772  an  attempt 
of  this  kind  was  made,  but  thro'  some  fatality, 
the  benevolent  design  miscarried.  Two  years 
afterwards  when  they  had  recovered  a  little 
from  their  discouragement,  [2]  it  was  repeated 
with  greater  success. 

At  this  time  the  Rev.  Samuel  Stanhope 
Smith  arrived  in  Virginia:  a  man  well  quali- 
fied in  many  respects  for  conducting  such  a 
design.  He  had  been  for  some  years  employed 
as  a  Professor  in  the  College  of  Nassau  Hall, 
New  Jersey,  with  much  credit,  both  on  account 
of  his  abilities  and  conduct.  Tho'  a  young  man, 
he  was  fully  equal  to  the  task  of  superintend- 
ing the  scheme  in  contemplation.  The  Pres- 
bytery, therefore,  immediately  turned  their  at- 
tention to  him  as  a  principal  in  the  affair.  And 
through  their  solicitation  and  the  earnest  de- 
sire of  many  respectable  characters  amongst 
the  people,  who  had  become  acquainted  with 
his  merit,  Mr.  Smith  consented  to  take  upon 
him  the  direction  of  such  an  Institution  as  has 
been  mentioned;  provided  the  expedient  of  a 
subscription,  in  case  it  be  tried,  should  succeed. 
This  measure  was  no  sooner  resolved  on  than 
it  was  put  into  execution,  and  the  success  of 
it  was  as  great  as  it  was  unexpected.  In  a  few 
months  several  hundred  pounds  were  sub- 
scribed; with  which,  considerable  buildings 
were  erected  and  a  valuable  collection  of  books 
was  procured  for  a  Library  to  the  Academy; 
all  which  will  more  plainly  appear  in  the 
Journals  which  follow.  Such  was  the  original 
of  the  Academy  since  distinguished  by  the  name 
Hampden-Sidney,  expressive  of  those  Ideas  of 
liberty,  both  civil  and  religious,  which  the  In- 
stitution was  designed  to  cherish;  and  such 
were  the  principles  upon  which  it  was  erected. 
The  records  of  the  Presbytery,  as  far  as  they 
relate  to  this  business  are  copied  and  subjoined 
to  this  account,  agreeable  to  an  order  of  the 
Trustees,  for  collecting,  arranging,  and  insert- 
ing all  matters  of  consequence  relating  to  the 
Academy  in  this  book.1 


^ee  Minutes,  Board  of  Trustees,  Dec.  19, 


1712 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY. 


1774 
October  13. 


The  Pby.  enter  upon 
the  business  of  an 
Academy. 


Recommendation  of 
Mr.  Smith,  & 


A  request  addressed 
more  particularly  to 
Pr.  Edward  [and 
Cumberland  Congre- 
gations to  collect] 
subscriptions. 


The  effect  of  the  re- 
quest. 


1775 


Feb.  1st. 


1300;£  subscribed  in 
less  than  4  months. 


400;£  applied  to  the 
purchase  of  books, 
&c. 


[3]  Extract  from  the  minutes  of  the  Pres- 
bytery of  Hanover,  Cubb  Creek.     October  13, 

1774. 

"The  Presbytery  resumed  the  consideration 
of  a  School  for  the  liberal  education  of  youth, 
which  we  unanimously  judge  to  be  of  great 
and  immediate  importance.  As  we  have  been 
favoured  with  the  company  of  Mr.  Saml.  Stan : 
Smith,  a  gentleman,  who,  we  are  well  informed, 
has  taught  a  considerable  time  with  approba- 
tion in  New  Jersey  College,  and  with  pleasure 
find  that  he  is  inclinable  to  take  the  charge  of 
such  a  Seminary  if  he  is  properly  encouraged: 
we  think  it  expedient  therefore  to  recommend  to 
our  Congregations  of  Cumberland  and  Prince 
Edward  in  particular,  and  to  all  others  in  gen- 
eral, to  set  subscriptions  on  foot,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  procuring  a  Library,  with  a  Philosophi- 
cal and  Mathematical  apparatus,  and  other 
things  necessary  in  such  an  undertaking.  And 
whenever  there  shall  be  proper  encouragement 
of  this  sort,  and  Mr.  Smith  or  any  other  proper 
person  can  be  engaged;  we  shall  gladly  concur 
to  establish  a  Seminary  in  Prince  Edward,  or 
the  upper  end  of  Cumberland  County  and  take 
it  under  our  care."     Caleb  Wallace,  Clerk. 

In  consequence  of  the  recommendation  of 
the  Presbytery  a  large  and  generous  subscrip- 
tion was  speedily  obtained,  chiefly  in  the  coun- 
ties of  Charlotte,  Prince  Edward,  and  Cumber- 
land, so  that  in  the  month  of  Feb:  following, 
we  find  them  actually  applying  the  money  to  the 
original  design ;  as  appears  from  the  following 
Extract. 

At  a  session  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover 
in  Prince  Edward  County,  February  1,  1775: 

"The  Presbytery,  upon  enquiry,  find,  that 
above  1300:6  is  already  subscribed  towards 
erecting  an  Academy,  etc.,  and  that  consider- 
able additions  are  expected. 

They  then  proceeded  to  consider  how  it 
would  be  most  proper  to  lay  out  the  money,  and 
where  to  establish  the  Institution. 

Ordered  that  400^  be  applied  to  purchase 
such  books  and  Mathematical  and  Philosophi- 
cal apparatus  as  are  more  immediately  neces- 


10 


CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 


1775 

Feb.  1st. 


Agents  appointed  to 
purchase  books,  &c. 


2d. 


A  place  chosen  by 
the  Pby.  to  erect  the 
Academy  upon. 


Persons  appointed  to 
draw  plans  of  houses, 
&c,  &c. 


Others  to  secure  the 
d  o  n  at  e  d  land  by 
Deed. 


Reason  for  appoint- 
ing Trustees. 


The    names   of    the 
Trustees   appointed. 


sary.  [4]  And  considering  that  the  non-im- 
portation agreement  may  continue  a  consider- 
able timp,  we  entrust  Mr.  Saml.  Stan:  Smith 
to  purchase  such  books  and  apparatus,  in  the 
Northern  Provinces,  by  and  with  the  advice 
and  concurrence  of  the  Revd.  Robert  Smith 
of  Pequea,  in  Pennsylvania,  the  Revd.  Robert 
Davidson,  and  Mr.  John  Bayard,  Merchant, 
both  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia ;  and  the  Revd. 
Doctor  John  Rodgers  and  Mr.  Samuel  Broome 
of  the  city  of  New  York,  or  any  two  of  them. 
And  we  also  request  that  the  Trustees  here- 
after nominated,  and  Messrs.  Joseph  Morton, 
James  Allen,  William  Smith,  Warren  Walker, 
William  Morton,  and  Robert  Goode,  collect  the 
said  40o£  or  borrow  it  upon  interest  and  trans- 
mit it  to  Philadelphia,  to  the  said  Saml.  Stan: 
Smith,  before  the  first  day  of  next  May." 
Feb:  2d 

"The  Presbytery  after  viewing  several  places 
shewn  them  by  the  Gentlemen  here,  agree  to 
build  an  academy,  [with  a]  dwelling  house  for 
the  Rector,  and  other  necessary  houses  to  the 
amount  of  the  subscriptions,  at  the  head  of 
Hudson's  branch  in  this  County  (Pr:  Edwd.), 
upon  an  hundred  acres  of  land,  given  for  that 
purpose  by  Mr.  Peter  Johnson — and  we  en- 
trust the  said  P.  Johnston,  Col.  John  Nash, 
Junr,  Mr.  James  Allen,  Sr,  Capt.  John  Morton, 
and  Capt.  Nathl.  Venable,  or  any  three  of  them, 
to  draw  plans  of  these  houses  and  let  them:  to 
the  lowest  bidder,  after  giving  proper  notice  to 
the  public.  And  we  also  entrust  Col.  Jno.  Nash, 
Jr.,  Mr.  Jas.  Allen  Sr.,  Capt.  Jno.  Morton,  and 
Capt.  Nathl.  Venable,  or  any  three  of  them,,  to 
have  the  above  named  100  acres  of  land  meas- 
ured and  bounded,  and  the  title  secured  for 
the  purposes  for  which  it  was  given. 

And  as  several  members  of  this  Presbytery 
live  at  too  great  a  distance  from  each  other,  to 
meet  together  frequently  to  consult  the  af- 
fairs of  the  Academy:  We  appoint  the  Revd. 
Messrs.  Richard  Sankey,  John  Todd,  Caleb 
Wallace  and  Samuel  Leake;  and  Mr.  Peter 
Johnson,  Colo.  Paul  Carrington,  Col.  John 
Nash  Jr.,  Cap :  John  Morton,  Cap :  Nathl.  Ven- 
able, Col:  Thomas  Read,  Mr.  James  Venable, 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY. 


ii 


1775 

Seven  a  Quorum. 
Their  powers. 


Reservation    of    the 
Pby. 


Feb.  3d. 

Mr.  S.  S.  Smith 
chosen  the  Rector, 
and  appointed  with 
others  to  procure  as- 
sistants. 


The  original  [ 
Tuition. 


]of 


The  mode  of  its  ap- 
pointment. 


Declaration  of  the 
Pby.  of  Catholicism 
and  liberality  in  their 
design. 


Mr.  Francis  Watkins,  and  the  Rector  ex  efficio, 
Trustees  of  the  Academy — Seven  of  these 
Trustees  shall  be  a  Quorum :  they  are  to  col- 
lect the  subscriptions,  [5]  expend  the  monies, 
and  conduct  all  the  affairs  of  the  Academy  in 
behalf  of  the  Presbytery ;  they  are  also  to  keep 
a  fair  book  of  accounts,  and  all  the  transac- 
tions relating  to  the  Academy :  The  Presbytery 
reserving  to  themselves  forever,  the  privilege  of 
choosing  the  Trustees  and  the  Rector  with  his 
assistants.  The  Clerk  is  ordered  to  send  a 
copy  of  this  minute  to  the  above  named  Gen- 
tlemen, and  in  behalf  of  the  Presbytery,  to 
solicit  their  acceptance." 

Feb :    3d. 

"The  Presbytery  choose  Mr.  Saml.  St :  Smith 
Rector  of  the  Pr:  Edward  Academy,  and  we 
entrust  the  said  Smith,  and  the  Revd.  Robert 
Smith  of  Pennsylvania,  and  Mr.  William 
Churchill  Houston,  Professor  in  New  Jersey 
College,  or  any  two  of  them,  to  choose  assis- 
tants. And  we  also  agree  that  tuition  be  fixed 
at  4£  pr.  annum,  for  each  scholar;  20  shillings 
of  which  shall  be  paid  on  the  day  of  entrance ; 
and  we  also  agree  that  all  the  tuition  monies 
shall  be  divided  between  the  Rector  and  his 
assistants,  at  the  discretion  of  the  Trustees, 
until  they  shall  think  proper  to  regulate  the 
matter  otherwise. 

The  Presbytery  having  for  a  long  time  had 
the  Education  of  youth  in  these  upper  Counties 
much  at  heart,  and  having  succeeded  so  far 
in  our  endeavours  to  promote  [it  as  to]  do 
something  very  considerable  towards  erecting 
an  academy  in  Prince-Edward  County,  where 
we  expect  every  branch  of  learning  will  be 
taught  to  advantage  on  the  most  Catholic  plan ; 
and  whereas  some  Gentlemen  who  are  unac- 
quainted with  our  sentiments,  may  encourage 
this  Seminary  with  reluctance  because  it  is  to 
be  under  the  protection  and  patronage  of  this 
Presbytery ;  we  take  this  opportunity  to  declare, 
that  tho'  the  strictest  regard  shall  be  paid  to 
the  morals  of  the  youth,  and  divine  worship 
conducted  evening  and  morning  in  the  Pres- 
byterian mode,  [on]  the  other  hand,  all  pos- 
sible care  shall  be  taken  that  no    [  |    in- 


12       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

fluence  be  used  by  any  member  of  this  Pres- 
bytery, [the  Rector]  of  the  Academy  or  his 
assistants  to  bias  the  [judgment  of  any  of] 
the  students;  but  that  all  of  every  denomina- 
tion [shall  fully]  [6]  enjoy  their  own  religious 
sentiments,  and  be  at  liberty  to  attend  that 
mode  of  public  worship,  that  either  custom  or 
conscience  makes  the  most  convenient  to  them." 

Thus  we  have  seen  the  foundation  of  the 
future  work  very  happily  laid.  The  commence- 
ment of  the  dispute  between  Great  Britain  and 
America  at  this  time  formed  in  some  measure 
a  coalition  of  religious  parties.  At  least  all 
orders  of  men  who  were  determined  to  defend 
the  liberties  of  their  Country  found  that  they 
needed  each  other's  assistance,  and  this  grad- 
ually introduced  liberal  sentiments,  which  were 
favourable  to  the  promotion  of  the  academy; 
and  we  find  amlbngst  the  subscribers  a  great 
number  of  names,  which  belonged  to  different 
religious  denominations.  The  subscription 
papers  were  generally  in  one  form,  with  the 
extract  of  the  minutes  of  the  Pby.  at  Cubb- 
Creek  for  their  Preamble.  For  the  satisfaction 
of  the  curious,  an  abbreviated  copy  of  one  of 
these  papers  differing  a  little  from  the  rest  in 
its  form  is  here  subjoined. 

Nov:r  12,  1774. 
"In  the  Academy  which  Mr.  Smith  has  the 
prospect  of  conducting  in  Pr:  Edwd.  county, 
according  to  the  request  and  appointment  of 
the  Presbytery  of  Hanover,  if  he  meets  with 
the  encouragement  he  expects;  shall  be  taught 
the  Greek  and  Latin  languages  to  their  great- 
est extent;  and  all  the  sciences  which  are 
usually  studied,  at  any  College,  or  Academy, 
on  the  Continent.  He  proposes  to  teach 
Geography  in  greater  perfection,  than,  he  is 
well  assured,  it  is  done  in  the  major  parts  of 
our  Institutions  of  learning ;  and  so  as  to  render 
it  an  excellent  handmaid  to  the  extensive  and 
useful  study  of  History ;  which  with  the  science 
of  Chronology  shall  be  attended  to.  Mathe- 
matical learning  he  has  made  himself  master 
of;   and   designs   to   teach   those  who   choose, 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  13 

Arithmetic  and  Algebra;  and  Geometry  applied 
particularly  to  surveying.  This  will  prepare 
the  way  for  the  study  of  Natural  Philosophy 
in  all  its  branches ;  after  which  he  will  instruct 
them  in  the  important  studies  of  Eloquence, 
Criticism,  and  the  science  of  Morals.  He  does 
not  propose  to  undertake  the  superintendency 
of  this  Academy  till  he  is  enabled  to  procure 
one  or  two  Gentlemen  of  approved  abilities, 
whom  he  has  in  his  view,  from  the  Northward, 
to  assist    [  ]   will   readily  perceive 

the  necessity  of  a  large  Library  [  J  Philo- 
sophical and  Mathematical  apparatus  in  order 


i4       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

From  the  Virginia  Gazette,  issues  for  October  and  December 

1775: 

AN  ACADEMY. 


Prince  Edward,  September  1st,  1775. 

By  the  generous  exertion  of  several  gentlemen  in  this  and 
some  of  the  neighboring  counties,  very  large  contributions  have 
lately  been  made  for  erecting  and  supporting  a  public  Academy, 
near  the  Courthouse,  in  this  county.  Their  zeal  for  the  interests 
of  learning  and  virtue  has  met  with  such  success  that  they  were 
enabled  to  let  the  buildings  in  March  last  to  several  undertakers, 
who  are  proceeding  in  their  work  with  the  greatest  expedition, 
A  very  valuable  library  of  the  best  writers,  both  ancient  and 
modern,  on  most  parts  of  science  and  polite  literature,  is  already 
procured,  with  part  of  an  apparatus  to  facilitate  the  studies  of 
the  Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy.  The  Academy  will 
certainly  be  opened  on  the  10th  of  next  November.  It  is  to 
be  distinguished  by  the  name  of  Hampden  Sidney,  and  will  be 
subject  to  the  visitation  of  twelve  gentlemen  of  character  and 
influence  in  their  respective  counties,  the  immediate  and  acting 
merrtbers  being  chiefly  of  the  Church  of  England.  The  number 
of  visitors  and  trustees  will  probably  be  increased  as  soon  as 
the  distraction  of  the  times  shall  so  far  cease  as  to  enable  its 
patrons  to  enlarge  its  foundations.  The  students  will  all  board 
and  study  under  the  same  roof,  provided  for  by  a  common 
steward,  except  such  as  choose  to  take  their  boarding  in  the 
country.  The  rates,  at  the  utmost,  will  not  exceed  £10  currency 
per  annum  to  the  steward,  and  £4  tuition  money,  20  shillings 
of  this  being  always  paid  at  entrance. 

The  system  of  education  will  resemble  that  which  is  adopted 
in  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  save  that  a  more  particular  atten- 
tion shall  be  paid  to  the  cultivation  of  the  English  language  than 
is  usually  done  in  places  of  public  education.  Three  Masters 
and  Professors  are  ready  to  enter  in  November,  and  as  many 
more  may  be  easily  procured  as  the  increased  number  of  students 
may  at  any  time  hereafter  require.  And  our  prospects  at  present 
are  so  extremely  flattering  that  it  is  probable  we  shall  be  obliged 
to  procure  two  Professors  more  before  the  expiration  of  the 
year. 

The  public  may  rest  assured  that  the  whole  shall  be  conducted 
on  the  most  catholic  plan.  Parents  of  every  denomination  may 
be  at  full  liberty  to  require  their  children  to  attend  on  any  mode 
of  worship  which  either  custom  or  conscience  has  rendered  most 
agreeable  to  them'.     For  our  fidelity,  in  every  respect,  we  are 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  15 

cheerfully  willing  to  pledge  our  reputation  to  the  public,  which 
may  be  the  more  relied  on,  because  our  whole  success  depends 
upon  their  favorable  opinion.  Our  character  and  interest,  there- 
fore being  both  at  stake,  furnish  a  strong  security  for  our 
avoiding  all  party  instigations,  for  our  care  to  form  good  men 
and  good  citizens  on  the  common  and  universal  principles  of 
morality,  distinguished  from  the  narrow  tenets  which  form  the 
complexion  of  any  sect,  and  for  our  assiduity  in  the  whole  circle 
of  education. 

Samuel  S.  Smith. 

P.  S. — The  principal  building  of  the  Academy  not  being  yet 
completed,  those  gentlemen  who  desire  their  children  to  enter  im- 
mediately will  be  obliged  to  take  lodgings  for  them  in  the 
neighborhood,  during  the  winter  session,  which  may  be  done  in 
houses  sufficiently  convenient,  on  very  reasonable  terms. 

TO  THE  PRINTERS. 

Gentlemen — I  have  read  in  your  Gazette,  for  some  weeks 
past,  an  advertisement  from  Prince  Edward  county,  intimating 
that  an  Academy  will  certainly  be  opened  in  that  county  on  the 
10th  of  November  next,  for  the  instruction  of  youth,  which,  as 
it  is  a  laudable  design,  ought  to  be  encouraged.  For  certain 
it  is,  that  public  schools,  under  proper  regulations,  might  prove 
extremely  advantageous.  But  as  I  am  sensible  that  some  worthy 
gentlemen,  who,  by  their  generous  contributions,  endeavoring 
to  promote  this  undertaking,  have  not  been  sufficiently  aware  of 
the  evil  consequences  that  might  arise  from  the  way  and  manner 
in  which  it  is  intended  to  be  conducted,  I  think  it  my  duty,  as 
a  member  of  society,  to  point  out  some  of  them,  and  appeal 
to  the  impartial  public,  whether  it  is  not  every  man's  duty  to 
prevent  all  probable  future,  as  well  as  present,  evils  by  all 
lawful  means  in  his  power. 

And  in  compliance  with  my  duty,  though  unwilling  to  offend 
any  man,  I  must  observe,  that  I  think  it  inconsistent  with 
prudence  or  good  policy  to  suffer  a  dissenter  to  teach  in  any 
of  our  public  schools,  much  less  to  act  as  President,  both  which 
are  intended  to  take  place  in  the  Prince  Edward  Academy. 

Mr.  Smith's  character  as  a  man,  (as  far  as  I  know)  may  be 
unexceptionable,  but  still,  as  a  Presbyterian,  his  confessions  of 
faith  show  that  he  believes  and  professes  doctrines  which  are 
not  only  repugnant  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Church  of  England, 
but,  in  my  opinion,  even  subversive  of  morality.    *  *  * 

Whether  it  is  proper,  then,  that  the  education  of  our  youth' 
should  be  entrusted  to  those  who  believe  such  doctrines,  or  profess 


i6  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

to  believe  them,  let  every  parent  who  has  the  spiritual  interest 
of  his  child  at  heart  determine.  Among  the  different  sciences 
proposed  to  be  taught  at  this  school,  the  study  of  divinity  is 
mentioned  as  one,  and  can  it  be  supposed  that  a  dissenting 
clergyman,  acting  under  the  direction  and  subject  to  the  control 
of  a  Presbytery  of  Dissenters,  who  are  visitors  of  this  school, 
viz.,  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover,  is  a  proper  person  to  bring  up 
students  for  the  Church  of  England?  Can  the  most  extensive 
charity  suppose  that  he  will  approve  of  the  doctrines  of  a  church 
with  which  he  will  not  hold  communion?  The  probable  conse- 
quence of  employing  dissenting  ministers  would  be  that  we 
should  see  dissenters  in  a  short  time  in  gowns  and  cassocks, 
eating  the  bread  of  a  church  to  which  they  are  no  friends.  Of 
which,  it  is  said,  there  are  some  instances  in  the  country  at  this 
time,  who  prove  by  their  conduct  that  an  increase  of  their  number 
would  be  no  blessing.  No  dissenter  can  complain  as  long  as 
they  are  permitted  the  free  exercise  of  their  religion  without 
molestation,  but  where  their  strides  evidently  tend  to  secure  the 
establishment  in  their  favor,  they  need  not  wonder  if  they  are 
opposed  by  all  who  prefer  the  present  establishment  to  them. 

If  gentlemen  of  fortune  in  the  lower  parts  of  the  country, 
should  remove  their  families  to  the  back  counties  during  the 
continuance  of  the  civil  war,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  several 
of  their  children  would  be  sent  to  the  Prince  Edward  School, 
for  want  of  a  better  opportunity,  and  it  is  an  universal  remark 
that  youth  are  generally  prejudiced  in  favor  of  the  school  in  which 
they  are  educated,  and  are  very  apt  to  imbibe  and  defend  their 
master's  sentiments.  If  this  school  should  meet  with  that  en- 
couragement which  Mr.  Smith  seems  to  intimate  in  his  advertise- 
ment, we  might  reasonably  expect,  in  a  few  years,  to  see  our 
Senate-house,  as  well  as  pulpits,  filled  with  dissenters;  and  thus 
they  might,  by  an  easy  transition,  secure  the  establishment  in 
their  own  favor.  To  those  that  think  this  hardly  possible,  let 
me  observe,  that  small  evils,  long  neglected,  have  often  proved 
fatal.  Therefore,  I  would  advise,  not  as  a  dictator,  but  as  a 
friend  to  mankind  in  general,  and  to  this  colony  in  particular, 
that  every  member  of  the  Church  of  England,  who  is  a  subscriber 
to  this  school,  would  withhold  his  contribution  till  the  school 
is  put  under  the  care  of  masters  who  are  all  members  of  the 
Church  of  England.  For  to  suppose  that  a  dissenter  is  a  proper 
tutor  to  bring  up  members  for  the  Church  of  England,  is  full 
as  absurd  as  it  would  be  to  assert  that  to  establish  Popery  in 
Quebec  is  the  most  effectual  method  to  proselyte  the  inhabitants 
to  the  Protestant  faith.     I  am  gentlemen, 

Your  very  humble  servant, 

Luther. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  17 


TO  THE  PRINTERS. 

Gentlemen — I  ami  not  under  the  least  apprehension  that  I  shall 
suffer  any  injury  by  the  production  of  a  certain  Luther,  in  your 
Gazette  of  the  18th  instant,  which  carries  upon  it  the  visible 
features  of  malice  and  disappointment.  Unless  the  honesty  of 
the  man's  principles,  in  piously  exhorting  "the  subscribers  to 
the  Academy  to  withhold  their  contributions,"  should  merit  a 
little  encomium,  there  is  but  one  insinuation  in  his  performance 
to  which  I  shall  pay  the  least  regard.  He  supposes  that  the 
Presbytery  of  Hanover  are  to  be  "visitors"  of  the  Academy, 
directly  contrary  to  the  assurance  which  I  gave  to  the  public 
in  my  advertisement.  Although  I  might  rely  upon  my  credit 
with  the  world,  at  least  as  much  as  a  man  who  seems  afraid 
to  acknowledge  his  name ;  yet,  because  the  insinuation  is  plausible, 
I  shall  explain  that  matter.  It  is  true  the  Presbyterian  clergy 
first  concerted  the  measure,  as  friends  to  the  interests  of  learning 
and  virtue,  which  had  lain  neglected  long  enough,  and  under 
their  auspices  it  acquired  considerable  maturity.  But,  far  from 
being  governed  by  contracted  notions,  that  they  might  extend 
the  utility  of  the  institution,  they  have  now  yielded  the  power 
of  visitation  and  of  managing  the  general  concern  of  the 
Academy,  into  the  hands  of  trustees,  who  are  chiefly  members 
of  the  Church  of  England.  Let  him  produce  an  instance  of 
equal  candor  from;  those  of  any  other  church.  On  his  narrow 
principles  we  could  form  no  very  flattering  hopes,  who  will  not 
suffer  a  dissenter,  though  ever  so  well  qualified,  to  have  any 
connection  with  the  management  of  a  place  of  education.  And 
so  great  is  his  zeal  upon  this  head,  that  he  makes  no  scruples  to 
recommend  the  grossest  iniquity  to  rob  them  even  of  the  smallest 
share  in  an  institution  which  they  have  the  .merit  of  erecting, 
and  the  still  greater  merit  of  establishing  on  a  Catholic  plan. 
I  hope  I  have  already  given  assurances  to  the  public  of  the  candor 
of  my  intentions,  and  of  the  Catholicism  of  the  principles  I  shall 
inculcate  in  the  course  of  education.  If  there  yet  remains  a 
scruple  in  the  minds  of  any  of  the  good  people  of  this  colony, 
I  shall  not  attempt  to  remove  it  by  replying  to  anonymous 
scribblers,  but  by  my  practice  and  the  reputation  of  my  scholars. 
And  if  any  man  hereafter  shall  think  proper  to  vent  his  slanders 
under  the  concealment  of  a  feigned  name,  he  shall  enjoy  the 
glory  of  the  combat  and  the  victory  to  himself.  He  merits 
no  attention  from  the  public,  nor  from  m<e. 

Samuel  S.  Smith. 


18       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Hampden  Sidney,  November  23,  1775. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  trustees  of  this  Academy,  held  on  the 
10th  instant,  Captain  Phil:  Holcombe  was  elected  steward.  The 
steward  is  appointed  to  furnish  wholesome  diet  to  the  students^ 
one-half  of  the  meat  at  least  to  be  fresh,  and  one-half  of  the 
bread  to  be  made  of  the  fine  flour  of  wheat.  And  he  obliges 
himself  to  furnish  servants  to  keep  their  rooms  clean  and  in 
good  order,  for  which  services  he  is  to  receive  at  the  rate  of 
eight  pounds  currency  per  annum,  forty  shillings  of  this  always 
to  be  paid  at  the  beginning  of  the  year,  to  enable  him  to  procure 
good  provisions  and  at  a  cheap  rate. 

The  students  will  be  obliged  to  provide  their  own  beds,  or  to 
pay  a  moderate  hire  for  them,  and  to  buy  their  own  candles* 
and  washing,  which  they  may  do  at  a  small  expense.  For  some 
years  they  will  be  permitted  to  take  their  wood  off  the  land 
belonging  to  the  Academy  gratis.  I  have  the  pleasure  to  inform 
the  public  that,  notwithstanding  the  principal  building  of  the 
Academy  is  at  present  so  incomplete,  the  steward  will  remove 
his  family  thither  immediately,  and  before  the  1st  of  January 
he  Will  be  able,  with  the  assistance  of  a  few  neighbors,  who 
live  well,  and  are  within  less  than  two  miles  of  Hampden  Sidney, 
to  accommodate  all  the  young  gentlemen  who  may  be  put  under 
my  care.  I  presume  we  shall  not  need  the  assistance  of  the 
neighborhood  longer  than  till  next  summer,  when  the  buildings 
will  be  chiefly  erected. 

Samuel  Stan  :  Smith. 

N.  B. — I  have  taken  care  to  furnish  the  library  with  all  the 
school  books  that  are  necessary  in  the  course  of  education,  which 
the  students  may  make  use  of  at  a  very  moderate  annual  rate* 
and  save  themselves  a  great  expense  in  buying  books. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  19 


"A  petition  of  sundry  inhabitants  of  the  County  of  Prince  Ed- 
ward, whose  names  are  thereunto  subscribed  [the  first  petition 
of  dissenters  to  the  House  of  Delegates]  was  presented  to  the 
House  and  read,  setting  forth,  that  they  heartily  approve  and 
cheerfully  submit  themselves  to  the  form  of  government  adopted 
for  this  State,  and  hope  that  the  United  American  States  will 
long  continue  free  and  independent;  *  *  *  that  justice  to 
themselves  and  posterity  makes  it  their  indispensable  duty  in 
particular  to  entreat,  that,  without  delay,  all  church  establish- 
ments might  be  pulled  down,  and  every  tax  upon  conscience  and 
private  judgment  abolished,  and  each  individual  left  to  rise  or  sink 
by  his  own  merit,  and  the  general  laws  of  the  land." — Journal  of 
the  House  of  Delegates  of  Virginia,  October  11,  1776. 


CALENDAR. 


At  a  Board  of  Trustees  Sept.  26th,  1776. 

Present,  the  Revd.  Messrs.  Samuel  S.  Smith,  Archd.  Mc- 
Robert,  Caleb  Wallace,  Colo.  Paul  Carrington,  Mr.  Natl.  Vena- 
ble,  Mr.  Jas.  Venable,  and  Frs.  Watkins. 

Messrs.  McRobert,  Smith,  Venable,  and  Watkins,  a  committee 
to  draw  up  a  Memorial  of  the  present  state  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College  to  be  laid  before  the  next  Convention,  General  Assembly, 
and  to  solicit  their  countenance  for  help.  Nathaniel  Venable 
and  Paul  Carrington  have  leave  to  build  an  house  on  the  Academy 
land — for  their  sons  or  others  as  students  (for  the  use  of  the 
Academy). 

Treasurer's  acc't  read.     Bal.  to  Debit,  £36.7.10^. 

t  Journal  of  the  House  of  Delegates  of  Virginia. 
Williamsburg:      Alexander     Purdie.     p.     79. 

Saturday,  November  16,  1776, 
.  A  memorial  of  the  trustees  of  the  Academy  of  Hamp- 
den-Sidney,  in  the  County  of  Prince  Edward,  was  presented  to 
the  House,  and  read;  setting  forth,  that  a  considerable  number 
of  gentlemen  in  that  and  the  neighboring  counties,  convinced  of 
the  importance  of  polite  literature  to  their  children  and  their 
country,  and  of  the  difficulty  of  acquiring  it  in  their  remote  situa- 
tion, have  by  their  own  efforts,  and  the  private  contributions  they 
were  able  to  collect,  erected  an  academy  for  that  purpose,  which 
is  distinguished  by  the  name  of  Hamlpden-Sidney,  in  memory  of 
those  great  patrons  of  liberty  and  letters;  that  the  rapid  growth, 
and  the  general  reputation  into  which  it  hath  risen,  in  a  short 
time,  have  rendered  it,  they  hope,  an  object  not  unworthy  the 
attention  of  the  Legislature  of  Virginia;  that  literature,  at  all 
times  ornamental,  is  now  justly  considered  as  necessary  to  the 
existence  and  stability  of  this  rising  Commonwealth,  and  may 
therefore  claim  the  encouragement  as  well  as  the  protection  of 
her  laws. 

That  they  are  aware  of  the  expenses  that  attend  a  war  in  the 
infancy  of  a  government,  and  commenced  under  every  disadvant- 
age, wherein  we  were  involved  by  the  security  into  which  our 
innocence  had  misled  us;  but  that,  even  under  the  growing  load 


John   Blair  Smith. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  21 

of  publick  debt,  there  are  reasons  which  seemed  to  them  to 
justify  and  render  necessary  the  present  application.  That  in  the 
course  of  human  life,  and  during  the  ravages  of  a  destructive 
war,  it  is  very  uncertain  how  many  of  those  who  now  fill  our 
civil  and  military  departments  may  survive  the  calamities  of  their 
country ;  and  that  it  is  a  fact  well  known,  and  regretted  in  many 
counties,  that  few  remain  behind  capable  of  supplying  the  places 
of  those  who  shall  be  torn  from  the  Commonwealth  by  death 
or  by  war.  That  our  resources  for  education  from  Britain  are 
cut  off.  That  the  prospect  of  leaving  an  extensive  republick 
young  and  unexperienced,  before  it  hath  acquired  stability,  to  be 
guided  by  the  councils  and  defended  by  the  arms  of  unskilful  and 
unlettered  men,  is  too  unfavorable  to  be  indulged  by  any  lover 
of  his  country.  That  it  may  be  too  late  to  seek  a  remedy  for  the 
evil  at  the  termination  of  the  war,  an  event  that  is  uncertain, 
and  may  be  remote.  That  they  do  not  forget  there  is  already 
a  college  amply  endowed,  but  it  is  at  present,  and  for  a  long 
time  may  be,  too  near  the  seat  of  danger,  and  too  much  in  the 
midst  of  camps,  to  render  its  country  that  service  it  would  other- 
wise be  capable  of  doing.  That  if  every  circumstance  of  situa- 
tion and  of  common  opinion  were  united  in  its  favour,  wise 
politicians  will  remember  that  it  is  dangerous  to  entrust  so  im- 
portant a  power  as  learning  in  the  hands  of  a  single  person,  or 
only  a  few.  That  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  history  of 
England  well  know  that  the  rivalship  of  Cambridge  and  Oxford 
hath  more  than  once  preserved  the  liberties  of  that  kingdom, 
which  might  have  fallen  a  sacrifice  if  one  of  them  had  possessed 
the  sole  prerogative  of  education.  That  besides,  they  conceive 
knowledge  should  be  diffused  as  equally  and  as  extensively  as 
possible  among  the  people.  That  their  designs  carry  in  them  no 
opposition  to  any  place,  or  party  of  men ;  their  system  is  catholick, 
and  calculated  to  banish  those  insidious  distinctions,  which,  how- 
ever little  they  may  have  been  felt  under  a  monarchical  govern- 
ment, are  improper  and  injurious  in  a  republick  State.  That 
they  do  not  claim  to  be  set  on  a  footing  that  will  rival  the  publick 
seminary  which  is  already  established,  their  publick  services  not 
having  yet  merited  it ;  they  only  pray  the  Legislature  will  enable 
them  to  erect  such  buildings  as  are  necessary  to  accommodate  the 
great  number  of  students  who  daily  apply  for  admission  into  the 
academy,  and  whose  hopes  of  an  education  are  likely  to  be  frus- 
trated through  the  want  of  room  for  their  reception ;  and  that  they 
may  be  placed  on  such  a  stage  where  they  may  have  an  oppor- 
tunity of  convincing  the  publick  whether  the  interests  of  educa- 
tion are  likely  to  suffer  in  their  management,  or  whether  their 
industry  and  success  in  the  service  of  their  country  will  be  such 
as  to  deserve  their  future  favour  and  indulgence.  That  con- 
siderably more  than  one  hundred  students  have  already  applied 


22  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

to  be  received  at  the  commencement  of  the  next  session,  and  that 
they  have  the  greatest  reason  to  believe  that  number  might  be 
doubled,  in  a  few  months,  if  it  were  in  the  power  of  the  Board  to 
furnish  them  with  proper  accommodations.  That  it  is  their 
opinion  they  could  serve  the  institution  better,  if  the  Legislature 
should  be  pleased  to  erect  the  Board  into  a  corporate  body,  and  to 
grant  the  masters  such  usual  exemptions  as  are  deemed  necessary 
to  large  literary  societies.  That  they  do  not  however  urge  these 
matters,  trusting  that  the  wisdom  and  zeal  of  the  House  for  the 
publick  welfare  will  perform!  whatever  is  consistent  with  good 
government,  and  the  more  important  exigencies  of  the  Common- 
wealth.] 

At  a  Board  of  Trustees  Deer.  18th  1776. 

Present,  the  Revd.  Messrs.  David  Rice  and  Samuel  S.  Smith, 
Colo.  Nash,  Mr.  Peter  Johnson,  Mr.  Nathl.  Venable,  Mr.  Jas. 
Venable,  and  Frans.  Watkins. 

Mr.  President  and  his  assistant  teachers  have  divided  the 
money  for  the  present  year  for  schooling. 

Application  made  by  Capt.  Holcombe,  Steward;  for  the  Academy, 
'that  this  Board  should  consider  his  allowance  for  boarding  the 
students,  and  moved  that  such  further  allowance  may  be  made 
for  the  ensuing  year  as  from  the  advanced  price  of  provisions 
and  other  necessaries  for  their  Diet  they  may  think  reasonable/ 
Allowance,  £g,  not  increased,  and  diet  strictly  prescribed — diets 
as  heretofore  for  breakfast  and  supper,  'not  suitable  but  very 
unfit  for  students/ 


At  a  Board  of  Trustees  at  H.  Sidney  Academy  March  nth, 
1777,  in  consequence  of  the  Steward's  notice. 
Colo.  John  Nash,  President. 

Present,  Revd.  Richd.  Synkey,  Revd.  Caleb  Wallace,  Peter 
Johnson,  Jas.  Venable,  Rev.  David  Rice,  Revd.  S.  S.  Smith,  Natl. 
Venable,  Frans.  Watkins. 

Capt.  Wm.  Bibb,  the  lowest  bidder,  appointed  Steward  from 
the  1st  of  July  next. 


At  a  Board  of  Trustees  at  Hampden  Sidney  Academy,  April 
nth  1777. 

Present,  Revd.  Messrs.  David  Rice  and  Caleb  Wallace,  Mr. 
Peter  Johnson,  Mr.  Jno.  Morton,  Mr.  Natl.  Venable,  Mr.  Jas. 
Venable,  and  Frans.  Watkins. 

Capt.  John  Morton  chosen  President  pro  tempore  in  the  room 
of  Colo.  John  Nash,  absent. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  23 

Memorial  to  last  General  Assembly  withdrawn.  Committee 
(Paul  Carrington,  John  Morton,  James  Madison,  Jr.,  Natl.  Vena- 
t>le,  Fran.  Watkins)  to  draw  scheme  for  a  Lottery,  for  addi- 
tional buildings.  Members  of  Board  to  solicit  donations  from  the 
publick  for  the  finishing  a  chapel,  and  paying  Steward  [Capt. 
Philemon  Holcombe]  for  improvements  made.  Mr.  Venable 
appointed  to  agree  with  some  workman  for  building  a  chapel. 

[Broadside,  printed  in  supplement  to  Virginia  Gazette,  July  25, 
1777. 

HAMPDEN  SIDNEY 
LOTTERY. 

1  Prize  of  2000  Dollars,  2000  Dollars 


2 

1000 

2000 

4 

500 

2000 

6 

200 

1200 

10 

100 

1000 

20 

50 

1000 

30 

25 

75o 

100 

15 

1500 

1000 

10 

1 0000 

1310 

Prizes 

5 

6550 

2483 

28000 

3ii7 

Blanks 

5600  Tickets  5  Dollars  each 

Deduction  4200  Dollars      £1260 

The  Lottery  is  permitted  by  an  act  of  the  'General  Assembly 
of  Virginia  for  the  purpose  of  raising  i26o£  to  be  laid  out  in 
erecting  additional  buildings  to  the  academy  of  H  amp  den-Sidney, 
in  the  county  of  Prince  Edward.  That  academy  was  set  on  foot 
by  the  private  donations  of  a  number  of  gentlemen,  who  consid- 
ered the  importance  of  polite  literature  to  their  children  and 
their  country,  and  the  difficulty  of  acquiring  it.  Their  efforts, 
and  the  faithful  discharge  of  duty  in  the  teachers  and  professors, 
have  been  attended  with  such  success,  that  this  seminary  hath 
gained  general  credit  and  reputation.  Nothing  remains  necessary 
to  complete  the  work,  so  as  to  be  of  general  utility,  but  sufficient 
additional  buildings  for  the  reception  and  entertainment  of  a 
great  number  of  students  who  wish  to  be  admitted.  As  every 
person  must  be  convinced  of  the  importance  and  necessity  of 
education  and  literary  improvement,  it  is  not  doubted  that  this 
scheme  will  meet  with  the  approbation  of  all   well-wishers  to 


24       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

society,  and  that  they  will  forward  this  generous  design  by  be- 
coming adventurers. 

The  managers  appointed  are,  Paul  Carrington,  William  Cabell, 
James  Madison,  Junr.,  John  Morton,  Thomas  Read,  Nathaniel 
V enable,  and  Francis  Watkins,  gentlemen,  or  any  four  of  them, 
who  are  to  give  bond  with  security,  and  take  an  oath,  well  ancf 
faithfully  to  discharge  their  trust,  and  for  paying  to  the  fortunate 
adventurers  the  prizes  that  may  be  drawn,  deducting  15  per  cent. 
for  the  money  intended  to  be  raised  by  the  scheme.  The  draw- 
ing will  be  at  the  courthouse  of  Prince  Edward  county,  and  so 
soon  as  the  tickets  are  disposed  of,  notice  of  the  time  will  be 
published  in  the  Virginia  Gazette. 

Tickets  are  to  be  had  of  any  of  the  managers,  and  at  the 
Post  Office  in  Williamsburg. 

N.  B.  All  prizes  not  demanded  within  four  months  after 
publication  will  be  deemed  generous  donations  for  the  purpose 
of  the  scheme.] 

At  a  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  S.  Academy  (at  the  particu- 
lar request  of  Mr.  Jno.  Springer)   May  17th  1777. 

Present,  Colo.  Nash,  President,  the  Revd.  Messrs.  Archd.  Mc- 
Robert  and  Caleb  Wallace,  Mr.  Peter  Johnson,  Mr.  Natl.  Venable, 
Mr.  James  Venable,  and  Frans.  Watkins. 

Mr.  Springer's  candour  in  giving  information  against  himself 
regarding  his  indiscretion  at  a  tavern  in  New  London  on  the 
1 8th  day  of  last  month.  Mr.  Springer,  after  suspension,  to  be 
restored  to  his  office  of  assistant  teacher. 


At  a  session  of  the  Board  at  Hampden  Sidney,  July  22d,  1777. 

Present,  Colo.  John  Nash,  President,  Revd.  Archd.  McRobert, 
and  Saml  S.  Smith,  Colo.  Thos.  Read,  Capt.  Jno.  Morton,  Mr. 
Natl.  Venable,  and  Frans.  Watkins. 

Capt.  Wm.  Bibb  hath  leave  to  put  two  additional  rooms  to  the 
house  Capt.  Holcombe  resided  in,  and  to  add  16  ft.  to  the  dining 
room.    Work  to  be  valued  by  arbitration. 

At  a  session  of  a  Board  of  Trustees  at  Hampden  Sidney,  Deer, 
nth,  1777.  Present,  Colo.  John  Nash,  President,  the  Revd. 
Messrs.  Rice,  Synkey,  Caleb  Wallace,  and  Saml.  S.  Smith,  Capt. 
Jno.  Morton,  Mr.  Natl.  Venable,  Mr.  Jas.  Venable,  and  Frans. 
Watkins. 

Another  Steward  to  be  employed.  The  present  Steward's  re- 
fusal to  comply  with  his  agreement  in  every  part,  makes  it  neces- 
sary to  discontinue  him  in  the  midst  of  the  year  for  which  he 
had  engaged.     Increased  cost  of  provisions.     Price  of  boarding 


James  Madison. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  25 

advanced  to  £20  per  scholar  per  annum.  Diet  prescribed. 
Breakfast  at  8  o'clock.  Dinner  at  1  o'clock.  Supper  at  8  o'clock. 
Three  of  the  teachers  to  be  boarded  free  from  charges.  Steward 
exempt  from  dieting  for  9  weeks  in  the  year  (the  vacation).  If 
students  depart  this  life  or  enter  the  service,  advanced  money  to 
be  refunded.    Trustees  to  visit  the  diets.1 

1Of  the  first  staff  of  instructors  were  several  recent  graduates  of  the 
College  of  New  Jersey — David  Witherspoon  (a  son  of  Dr.  Witherspoon, 
of  Scotland  and  Princeton),  Samuel  Doak,  and  John  Springer,  besides 
the  brothers  Samuel  Stanhope  and  John  Blair  Smith.  The  first  Presi- 
dent, Samuel  Stanhope  Smith,  remained  in  charge  of  the  Academy  four 
years,  returning  in  1779  to  Princeton,  of  which  he  became  President  in 
1795.  He  was  succeeded  at  Hampden  Sidney  by  John  Blair  Smith,  a 
man  of  great  courage  and  force  of  charactei,  during  whose  administra- 
tion the  Academy  was  chartered  as  a  College.  There  was  no  earlier 
distinctively  college  charter  still  in  force  granted  by  any  legislative  body 
in  the   Southern   States,    at   least  south   of   Maryland. 

In  the  vacation  of  1777  John  Blair  Smith,  with  a  company  of  students 
of  which  he  was  captain,  marched  to  Williamsburg  to  defend  the  coun- 
try. As  the  event  was,  their  services  were  not  needed  [See  Virginia 
Magazine  of  History  and  Biography,  XVII,  442].  The  Academy  seems 
never  to  have  been  closed,  during  a  whole  session,  on  account  of  the 
war.  The  records  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  as  shown,  are  incomplete 
for  the  years  1777-1782.  But  Dr.  Foote,  in  the  first  volume  of  his 
Sketches,  p.  400,  adduces  evidence  for  the  continuity  of  the  exercises  of 
the  Academy  during  that  period. 

With  the  exception  of  John  Blair  Smith  the  first  staff  of  instructors 
had  disappeared  by  1779.  It  is  possible  that  James  Mitchell  and  Charles 
Wingfield,  appointed  Tutors  in  1776  and  1778,  may  have  assisted  Presi- 
dent Smith  after  1779.  It  is  possible  that  President  Smith  was  the  sole 
instructor,  or  that  his  assistants  from  1780  to  1784  have  been  forgotten. 
Of  the  first  group,  John  Springer  became  a  teacher  and  preacher  in 
South  Carolina  and  Georgia — very  much  of  a  pioneer  in  those  activities 
in  the  up  country  south  of  the  Savannah  river.  Of  Samuel  Doak, 
founder  of  the  first  literary  institution  in  the  Mississippi  Valley,  it  is 
stated :  "No  man  of  his  generation  perhaps  did  so  much  for  the  education 
of  Tennessee  or  exercised  such  a  beneficent  influence."  [Merriam, 
Higher  Education  in  Tennessee..  Bulletin,  Bureau  of  Eudcation,  1893, 
p.  227.] 

This  lacuna  in  the  Board  Minutes  during  the  war  was  due  in  part 
to  the  great  difficulty  of  the  question  of  'Diets.'  Where  Diets  are  a 
vanishing  quantity  there  cannot  well  be  a  number  of  consumers,  of  the 
student  class.  Thus  early  the  matter  of  Commons  was  vexed.  It  con- 
tinued to  be  so  during  times  of  peace  as  well  as  of  war.  The  whole 
subject  is  an  instance  of  how  natural  laws  may  not  be  disregarded:  eat- 
ing in  commons  is  no  business  for  boys.  Long  ago  the  celebrated  Dr. 
Cooper  said  to  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  South  Carolina  College — 
"the  College  is  in  yearly  jeopardy  of  being  destroyed  by  the  disputes 
about  eating."  As  for  the  period,  1 777-1 782,  it  is  to  be  remembered  that 
the  students  of  Yale  College  were  dispersed  in  1776  and  in  1777,  because 
the  Steward  was  quite  unable  to  provide  rations;  and  in  1779  the  begin- 
ning of  the  winter  term  at  Yale  was  delayed  several  weeks  for  the 
same  reason. 


26  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

At  a  meeting  of  a   Board  of  Trustees,  Deer.    19th   1782. 

Present,  the  Revd.  Jno.  B.  Smith  and  Archd.  McRobert, 
Messrs.  Jno.  Morton,  Jos.  Parks,  Charles  Allen,  Wm.  Booker, 
and  Saml.  W.  Venable. 

Archd.  McRobert,  Chairman,  and  Saml.  W.  Venable,  Clerk, 
pro  tempore. 

Ordered,  that  a  resolution  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover  [dated 
New  Providence,  Oct.  24th,  1782]  be  read  and  entered  on  the 
Minutes — 'The  Presbytery  agreeable  to  the  original  institution  of 
that  Academy  appoint  [as  Trustees]  Messrs.  James  Allen, 
Charles  Allen,  Saml.  W.  Venable,  William  Booker,  Wm  Morton, 
of  Charlotte,  Joseph  Parks,  and  Colo.  Thos.  Scott,  in  addition 
to  those  who  already  act  in  that  capacity.' 

Ordered,  that  every  proceeding  relative  to  the  Academy  be 
entered  in  a  blank  book  belonging  to  the  Academy,1  and  that 
Mr.  Charles  Allen,  the  Revd.  Jno.  B.  Smith,  and  Saml.  W. 
Venable  have  the  care  of  this  business  as  a  Committee  for  the 
ensuing  year. 

Ordered,  that  there  be  four  stated  quarterly  meetings,  the  first 
Thursday  in  March,  June,  September,  and  December. 

Committee  to  report  on  appointment  of  Mr.  Jno.  Overstreet  as 
Steward  to  the  Academy. 

Committee  [McRobert,  Jno.  B.  Smith,  and  Colo.  Nash]  to 
have  the  care  of  the  rooms  of  the  Academy — these  to  be  left 
by  occupants  in  repair.    Rjbom  rent,  £3  per  room. 

At  a  Board  of  Trustees,  March  6th,  1783. 

Present,  Jno.  B.  Smith,  McRobert,  Jno  Morton,  Chas.  Allen, 
James  Allen,  John  Nash,  Thos.  Scott,  Sam :  W.  Venable. 
McRobert,  Chairman ;  Venable,  Clerk,  pro.  temp.  /  Committee 
for  entering  papers  in  a  blank  book  having  found  it  necessary  to 
consult  Mr.  Francis  Watkins'  book  of  accounts,  Mr.  Watkins 
is  added  to  the  Committee.  John  Holcombe  Overstreet  confirmed 
as  Steward.  Room  rent  to  be  10  shillings  for  every  student. 
Managers  of  the  Lottery  to  be  notified  that  the  state  of  the 
Academy  makes  a  settlement  of  their  accounts  necessary.  Mc- 
Robert, John  Blair  Smith,  Charles  Allen,  and  Sam:  W.  Venable 
to  petition  the  General  Assembly  for  the  incorporation  of  the 
Board.2  Same  committee  to  petition  for  the  withdrawal  of  the 
Academy's  funds  from  the  Loan  Office. 

^he  few  pages  of  this  book  that  have  been  preserved  appear  in  the 
Introduction. 

2Where  was  the  institution  about  to  be  incorporated?  See  Advertise- 
ment of  General  Lawson  in  the  Virginia  Gazette  or  American  Ad- 
vertiser (Richmond),  Feb.  1,  1783.— Good  dwelling  house,  &c,  'on  the 
main  road  leading  from  Philadelphia  to  Charleston'— suitable  for  either 
public  or  private  purposes — near  College. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  27 

Letter  read  from  Nathaniel  Venable,  requesting  payment  of 
money  advanced  for  purchase  of  Library. 


At  a  meeting  of  a  Board  of  Trustees,  April  226.,  1783. 

Present,  the  Revd.  Mr.  Smith,  Col.  Nash,  Col.  Scott,  Mr. 

Nathaniel  Venable,   Mr.   Morton,   Mr.   Booker,   Mr.   James 

Allen,  Mr.  Charles  Allen,  Mr.  Thomas  Watkins,   [?]   Mr. 

James  Venable,  and  Mr.  Parks. 

The  Revd.   Mr.  Smith  empowered  to  charge  students  using 

Library  books  for  school  purposes  %  the  value  of  such  books,  the 

money  to  be  appropriated  for  purchasing  new  books. 

Committee  petitioning  for  incorporation  to  add  to  the  names 
of  the  Trustees  entered  in  the  petition,  Colo.  Joel  Watkins,  Colo. 
Evrd.  Meade,  and  Mr.  Richd.  Foster. 

On  application,  Capt.  James  Morton  to  be  Steward,  at  the 
expiration  of  the  time  Mr.  Overstreet  engaged  for. 


At  a  Board  of  Trustees  June  5th,  1783. 
Present,   the   Revd.    Messrs.    Synkey,   McRobert,   and   John    B. 
Smith,  Col.  Nash,  Mr.  Jas.  Allen,  Jno.   Morton,  Wra.  Booker, 
Jo.  Parks,  Chas.  Allen,  and  Sam :  W.  Venable. 

Revd.  Mr.  Synkey,  Chairman. 
Peter  Hales  to  be  paid  £15  for  repairs  to  Academy.     Revd.  Mr. 
Smith  continued  in  appointment  to  give  notice  to  the  Managers 
of  the  Hampden  Sidney  Lottery  to  make  a  speedy  settlement  of 
their  acc'ts. 

The  Committee  for  petitioning  the  Assembly  for  the  incor- 
porating this  Academy  report  that  they  have  done  the  business 
agreeable  to  the  order  of  this  Board,  and  have  obtained  an  act 
of  incorporation  for  this  Board. 

1783.  Nov.  18.   Mr.  McRobert. l 

Students  not  boarding  with  the  steward  to  pay  to  him  20 
shillings  for  room-attendance. 

1784.  Mar.  4.   Col.  Nash. 

A  letter  received  from  the  Revd.  David  Rice,  setting  forth 
his  resignation  as  a  Trustee  of  the  College.  Ordered,  that  in 
future  the  steward  collect  the  rent  of  rooms  from  the  students. 

Genl.  Lawson,  the  Revd.  John  B.  Smith,  and  Charles  Allen 
a  Committee  for  further  application  to  the  Assembly  for  aid. 

beginning  here,  the  chairman  of  each  meeting  is  indicated  after  the 
date. 


28       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 


[Calendar,  Virginia  State  Papers,  edited  by  Dr.  W.  P.  Palmer 
and  Sherwin  McRae  (Hampden  Sidney,  class  of  1822),  Vol.  V, 
p.  50: 

Memorial  from  John  B.  Smith  &  Ro.  Lawson  to  the  Governor 
and  Members  of  the  Council,  in  Behalf  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College. 

Gentlemen : 

As  you  are  not  less  distingunished  for  your  abilities  and  taste 
in  polite  learning  than  for  your  high  rank  in  the  State,  we  are- 
encouraged  to  address  you  in  behalf  of  the  College  of  Hampden 
Sidney.  It  has  been  instituted  and  carried  on  to  a  considerable 
degree  of  usefulness  by  the  generous  donations  of  individuals, 
neither  connected  by  particular  favour  nor  interest  From  the 
same  benevolent  source  alone,  we  derive  a  supply  to  answer  the 
various  exigences  which  arise  in  such  an  institution.  As  we  are 
now  engaged  in  building  a  Common  Hall  for  the  public  academi- 
cal exercise  of  the  students,  and  have  no  funds  for  defraying 
the  expence,  we  are  obliged  to  solicit  aid  from  the  Patrons  of 
Science  for  this  purpose.  Our  principal  design  in  the  erection 
of  this  building  is  to  promote  the  useful  and  ornamental  practice 
of  speaking  with  ease  in  public.  And  as  your  experience  in  the 
business  of  the  State  undoubtedly  convinces  you  gentlemen  of 
the  importance  of  an  early  habit  and  address  in  oratory,  we  pre- 
sume you  will  cheerfully  encourage  any  useful  plan  for  the  cul- 
tivation of  it  in  this  Government.  And  as  the  public  periodical 
exhibitions  of  the  Students  at  the  College  have  been  attended 
with  the  best  effects  this  way,  though  they  have  laboured  under 
many  disadvantages  for  the  want  of  a  proper  building  for  the 
purpose,  we  flatter  ourselves  that  you  will  grant  us  such  assist- 
ance as  you  may  judge  to  be  convenient  and  necessary  upon  the 
present  occasion. 

We  are  Gentlemen, 
Your  very  humble  servts.] 

1784.   June  23.    Mr.  McRobert. 

Primary  intention  that  room  rents  be  used  'to  preserve  the 
College  and  its  buildings  in  repair.'  Gifts  received :  2  vols,  of 
Chambers'  dictionary  very  elegantly  executed — from  Colo. 
Everard  Meade  of  Amelia;  3  vols,  of  Sir  Isaac  Newton's  Prin- 
cipia — from  Genl.  Robert  Lawson ;  and  2  vols,  of  Dr.  Wither- 
spoon's  Essays — from  Colo.  John  Nash.  Also  a  Wilson's  pocket 
microscope  given  by  Colo.   David   Stokes  of  Lunenburg. 

The  Board  undertook  the  business  and  thought  proper  to 
adopt  the  following: 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  29 

LAWS  &  ORDINANCES  FOR  THE  REGULATION  OF 
THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SYDNEY. 

I.  Of  Classes. 

1.  The  students  shall  be  arranged  by  the  President  and  Masters 
into  three  distinct  forms  or  classes,  the  lowest  of  which  shall 
be  called  the  Sophomore  Class,  the  second  the  Junior  Class,  and 
the  highest  the  Senior  Class. 

2.  In  order  to  admission  into  the  Sophomore  Class  the  stu- 
dents shall  be  acquainted  with  the  English  Grammar,  Caesar's 
Commentaries,  Sallust,  Virgil,  and  the  Roman  Antiquities. 

3.  In  order  to  admission  into  the  Junior  Class  the  students 
shall  be  acquainted  with  Cicero's  Orations,  Geography,  Horace, 
the  Greek  Testament,  and  Arithmetic. 

4.  In  order  to  admission  into  the  Senior  Class,  the  students 
shall  be  acquainted  with  Lucian,  Xenophon,  Euclid's  Elements  of 
Geometry,  Trigonometry,  Mensuration,  and  Algebra. 

5.  Those  students  who  are  candidates  for  Literary  Degrees 
shall  be  acquainted  with  all  the  studies  before  recited,  as  well 
as  Longinus,  Philosophy,  History,  Cronology,  and  Criticism. 

6.  The  last  examination  shall  be  held  in  the  presence  of  the 
President  and  Trustees ;  and  those  who  pass  with  approbation 
shall  have  four  weeks  recess  from  business,  before  their  degrees 
are  conferred,  to  prepare  for  their  publick  exhibition  and  then 
if  no  impediment  further  be  in  the  way,  they  shall  commence 
Bachelors  of  the  Liberal  Arts  and  Sciences. 

7.  None  shall  be  admitted  to  degrees,  however  in  other  respects 
qualified  unless  he  first  produce  a  certificate  from  the  President 
.and  Steward  of  having  discharged  his  College  expences. 

8.  The  first  Tuesday  in  May  annually  shall  be  the  time  for 
conferring  degrees  upon  the  candidates,  the  order  of  which 
together  with  the  different  exercises  is  hereby  left  to  the  direc- 
tion of  the  President  and  Masters. 

9.  Each  candidate  for  degrees  shall  pay  the  sum  of  .  four 
Dollars  to  the  President  upon  signing  his  diploma. 

10.  After  a  space  of  two  years,  they  who  have  taken  their 
first  degree  in  the  arts,  may  be  admitted  to  the  degree  of 
Masters. — 

The  members  of  College  in  the  three  Classes  shall  be  required 
to  wear  Distinguishing  habits  of  black  at  publick  prayers  and  at 
church. 

11.  All  other  students  who  come  for  instruction  to  the  College, 
and  do  not  choose  to  go  through  a  regular  course  of  education 
may  be  permitted  to  join  any  of  the  Classes  in  the  study  of 


30       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

those  parts  of  science  which  they  wish  to  obtain  the  knowledge 
of,  and  during  such  connexion  they  shall  also  be  required  to 
wear  the  College  habit  as  other  students  do,  and  be  under  the 
same  regulations  as  other  students  are.  Any  other  description 
of  students  shall  be  considered  as  in  the  Grammar  school,  subject 
however  to  the  general  laws  and  orders  of  the  College. 

2.  Of  Teachers. 

i.  There  shall  be  in  the  College  at  present,  besides  the  Presi- 
dent, one  Tutor  of  the  Sophomore  and  Junior  Classes,  one  French 
Master  and  one  English  Master. 

4.  The  President  and  Masters  shall  as  soon  as  it  can  be  made 
convenient,  wear  College  Habits,  distinguishable  in  form  from 
those  of  the  students. 

3.  Of  Studies. 

1.  The  students  shall  be  obliged  to  attend  to  business  in  the 
hours  appointed  by  the  president  and  masters;  and  none  shall 
absent  themselves  from  their  rooms  after  9  o'clock  at  night. 

4.  Of  Religion  &  Morality. 

1.  Publick  prayers  shall  be  held  every  morning  at  6  o'clock 
in  some  convenient  place,  and  every  evening  at  5  o'clock,  by 
the  President  or  one  of  the  Masters,  when  all  the  students  shall 
attend  with  gravity  and  decency ;  whoever  shall  violate  this  law 
shall  be  reprimanded  by  the  president  or  master  officiating  and 
fined  not  exceeding  4  d.,  and  upon  a  repetition  of  the  offence 
be  punished  at  discretion. 

2.  All  the  students  shall  be  required  to  attend  publick  worship 
on  the  Lord's-day  whenever  it  shall  be  convenient ;  that  is  when- 
ever it  shall  be  within  three  miles  of  the  College,  and  when 
there,  shall  behave  seriously  and  devotedly — any  student  violat- 
ing this  article  shall  be  punished  as  above,  except  that  he  may 
be  fined  not  exceeding  8  d. 

7.  Neither  shall  any  student  be  found  in  any  ordinary  nor 
even  on  any  pretences  unless  at  stated  meals,  nor  drink  any 
strong  liquors  or  mixtures  of  them,  in  the  company  of  others, 
during  the  different  sessions  of  business  in  the  College. 

5.  Of  Decency  &  Propriety. 

2.  Any  student  that  disfigures  or  injures  any  of  the  buildings 
or  their  furniture  he  shall  repair  the  damage  double. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  31 

6.  Of  Authority. 

2.  Every  student  upon  meeting  the  President  or  any  of  the 
Tutors  shall  salute  him  respectfully,  and  during  the  time  of 
recitation,  or  when  beginning  to  address  them  upon  any  occasion, 
shall  stand  upright  with  the  head  uncovered. 

7.  Of  Sundries. 

1.  Every  student  shall  upon  entrance  pay  for  six  months' 
tuition  and  boarding  and  the  same  in  advance  at  the  expiration 
of  every  six  months  *  * 

2.  Each  student  shall  write  out  and  keep  by  him  a  coppy 
of  such  a  part  of  these  Laws  as  the  President  shall  direct. 

8.  Of  Graduates. 

Whenever  it  shall  happen  that  any  persons  who  have  received 
degrees  here  or  elsewhere  shall  desire  to  spend  some  further 
time  in  studying  at  this  place,  they  shall  have  the  privilege  of 
using  the  books  in  the  Library  upon  conforming  to  the  Laws 
of  the  College  as  far  as  they  can  with  propriety  be  apply'd  to 
them. 

9.  Of  A  Steward. 

1.  The  office  of  a  Steward  is  to  furnish  proper  provisions  to 
the  students  three  times  every  day,  at  such  times  as  shall  suit 
the  hours  of  study,  to  have  their  beds  made  up  and  to  keep  the 
houses  in  proper  neatness. 

3.  The  Steward  shall  be  allowed  the  privilege  of  keeping  a 
house  of  private  entertainment  and  retailing  such  articles  of 
merchandize  as  may  not  interfere  with  the  discharge  of  his 
duty. 

4.  He  shall  be  allowed  the  exclusive  boarding  of  such  students 
as  cannot  come  from  their  homes,  except  when  any  particularly 
requests  to  live  with  the  President  and  he  consents  to  take 
them. 

As  our  funds  are  too  small  to  build  an  house  sufficiently  large 
for  the  publick  exercises  of  the  College,  upon  motion,  Resolved, 
that  Messrs.  McRobert,  Chas.  Allen,  and  Smith  be  a  committee 
to  wait  on  the  vestry  of  the  Episcopal  Church  or  whatever 
body  may  have  the  direction  of  the  property  secured  by  law 
to  that  church  and  treat  with  them  for  the  removal  of  French's 
Church  to  this  place.1 

'French's  Church  stood  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  College,  near 
French's  Store,  later  King's  Tavern,  later  Kingsville.  French  soldiers 
were  quartered  there  after  1781,  and  it  is  supposed  that  seventy  of 
them,  dying  of  smallpox,  are  buried  in  the  churchyard.  The  name  was 
due  to   Andrew   French,   a   Scotch    factor. 


32       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Upon  motion,  Ordered  that  the  Chairman  wait  on  Genl. 
Lawson  with  the  thanks  of  this  Board  for  his  assiduous  atten- 
tion to  the  interest  of  the  College. 

Resolved,  that  Mr.  Wm.  Mahon  be  appointed  the  Tutor  of 
the  Sophomore  and  Junior  Class,  and  that  Mr.  Drury  Lacy  be 
appointed  English  Master. 

Ordered,  that  in  the  future  our  quarterly  meetings  shall  be 
held  in  the'  College  dining-room,  and  that  the  Steward  have 
previous  notice  to  prepare  a  dinner  for  the  President  and 
Trustees. 

A  form  for  diplomas  to  be  prepared  and  a  seal  secured. 

1784.  July  19.  Mr.  McRobert. 

Submission  of  agreement  with  church  wardens  [Philemon 
Holcombe  and  Richard  Foster]  relative  to  the  removal  of 
French's  Church —  'i.  That  the  property  remain  forever  in  the 
Episcopal  Church.  2.  That  the  Trustees  make  such  repairs  in 
it  as  they  judge  necessary  at  their  own  expense,  and  shall  have 
the  privilege  of  making  use  of  it  forever  as  a  Common  Hall.'1 

Committee  appointed  to  superintend  the  removal. 

1784.  Sept.  2.  Capt.  Jno.  Morton. 

Ratification  of  agreement  with  Church-wardens.  Removal  of 
church  postponed  until  further  orders.  Capt.  John  Morton  and 
Charles  Allen  a  committee  to  let  the  building  a  Common  Hall 
40  feet  by  30  and  15  feet  pitch  [changed  to  52x34,  June  15, 
1785]. 

1784.  Dec.  22.   Col.  Nash. 

The  committee  appointed  for  superintending  the  building  a 
Common  Hall  made  their  report. 

Mr.  Francis  Watkins  to  give  such  orders  as  he  shall  think 
necessary  for  the  collecting  of  the  subscriptions. 

1785.  Apr.  18.   Mr.  McRobert. 

State  of  a  dispute  between  Mr.  Mahon,  one  of  the  Tutors 
of  the  College,  and  Mr.  Crawford,  one  of  the  students,  which 
ended  in  the  expulsion  of  Mr.  Crawford  by  sentence  of  the 
president  and  tutors.  Upon  mature  deliberation,  sentence  re- 
versed. 

Mr.  Mahon  to  occupy  the  house  built  on  College  land  by 
Overstreet. 

;  ^his  transaction  is  typical  of  the  fortunes  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
after  the  Revolution.  Richard  Foster,  church-warden,  was  a  Trustee 
of  the  College. 


Thomas  Read. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  33 

Damages  to  College  property  inflicted  by  unknown  perpetrators 
shall  be  equally  levied  upon  all  the  students. 

1785.  June  15.   Mr.  Nash. 

Rules  adopted  'respecting  the  Meeting  and  duty  of  the  Presi- 
dent and  Trustees  in  their  corporate  capacity/1  with  a  form  of 
diploma  prescribed. 

Acc't  settled  with  Mr.  Venable — still  due  him  £109.  8. 

Martin  Smith  directed  to  pay  rents  of  French's  store  due 
prior  to  acquisition  by  Board.  Resolved,  that  Mr.  Watkins  con- 
tinue to  give  such  orders  respecting  the  subscriptions  as  he  think 
proper. 

1785.    Sept.  7.  The  Revd.  Mr.  Synkey. 

Acc't  allowed  for  repairs  done  to  the  houses  at  French's  store 
to  the  amount  of  £54.  10. 

Gen.  Lawson,  McRobert,  and  Chas.  Allen,  committee  to  petition 
General  Assembly  for  back  rents  of  French's  Store;  also  to 
show  state  of  surplus  land  of  Speirs  &  Co.  adjoining  said 
store. 

Capt.  Jno.  Morton  to  collect  due  subscriptions  at  5$.  If  good 
flour  can  be  bought  at  30/  or  32/  per  barrel,  and  delivered,  price 
of  board  with  the  Steward  to  continue  the  same. 

'Resolved,  that  when  any  of  the  students  of  this  College  shall 
upon  examination  appear  to  be  as  well  acquainted  with  the 
French  language  as  it  is  usual  to  expect  that  candidates  for 
Literary  Degrees  should  be  acquainted  with  Greek,  that  such 
students  passing  the  usual  examination  in  other  branches  of 
science  shall  be  admitted  to  a  degree  without  being  acquainted 
with  Greek.' 

1785.  Sept.  27.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Mr.  Wm.  Mahon,  one  of  the  Tutors,  appeared  and  complained 
to  the  board  that  he  has  been  repeatedly  insulted  by  the  students 
of  the  College  by  their  throwing  stones  &c  at  his  person  and 
house  in  the  night. 

1785.    Dec.  1.    Mr.  McRobert. 

Resolved,  as  the  opinion  of  this  Board  that  Mr.  Overstreet 
had  not  any  right  to  transfer  the  house  in  question  at  the  time 
when  Mr.  Mahon  made  the  purchase. 

In  regard  to  the  disorders  complained  of  by  Mr.  Mahon,  the 
Board  can  do  nothing  in  the  case  at  present. 

i"  *  *  *  Every  member  of  the  Board  shall  use  his  influence  in 
recommending  the  College  upon  proper  occasions,  and  obviating  any 
unreasonable  prejudices  against  it  which  they  may  have  an  opportunity 
of  observing." 


34  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1786.  Mar.  9.  The  Revd.  Richd.  Sankey. 

President  to  give  publick  notice  in  the  Virginia  Gazette  that 
no  student  will  be  rec'd  in  future  without  first  paying  room, 
rent  in  advance  and  all  arrearages. 

Committee  to  give  immediate  and  particular  attention  to  the 
small  red  house  at  French's  Store1 — either  sell  it  or  secure  it 
from  the  weather. 

Capt.  Jno.  Morton  to  purchase  a  ticket  in  the  Mason's  Lottery 
for  the  use  of  the  College. 

1786.  Apr.  28.   Mr.  McRobert. 

The  President  laid  before  the  Board  a  petition  from  about. 
30  of  the  students  praying  for  a  dismission  of  Mr.  Mahon. 
Mr.  Mahon  also  appeared  before  the  board  and  informed  them 
that  he  could  act  no  longer  in  the  capacity  of  Tutor.  The  Board 
agreed  to  accept  of  his  resignation,  and  referred  the  form  of 
his  dismission  wholly  to  the  President's  discretion.2 

1786.  June  22.  Mr.  McRobert. 

Capt.  Jno.  Morton  has  purchased  ticket  No.  113  in  the  Free 
Mason's  lottery.  Another  ticket  231  was  presented  to  the  Col- 
lege by  Mr.  John  Mason.  Three  other  tickets  No.  1292,  1293, 
and  1294  were  presented  by  Mr.  Martin  Smith  under  the  follow- 
ing conditions,  viz.  if  these  tickets  draw  prises  the  money  or 
so  much  of  it  as  may  be  sufficient  be  layed  out  in  the  purchase 
of  a  good  sett  of  scenes  and  dresses  for  the  use  of  the  students, 
in  their  public  exhibitions. 

The  Board  are  dissatisfied  with  Capt.  Richard  Allen,  the  under- 
taker of  the  Common  Hall,  for  not  having  complyed  with  his. 
contract  as  undertaker. 

The  President  informed  the  Board  that  he  had  agreed  with 
an  engraver  to  execute  a  seal  for  this  corporation. 

1786.   Sept.  22.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Degrees    conferred    [eight    candidates].3      Upon   motion    re- 

lrrhe  French's  Store  tract,  412  acres  with  appurtenances,  had  been 
granted  to  the  College  in  1784 — See  Hening's  Statutes  at  Large,  XI,  392, 
This  was  property  of  Alexander  Speirs,  John  Bowman  &  Company, 
merchants  in  Glasgow,  escheated  to  the  Commonwealth.  It  was  fairly 
valuable  property,  the  rents  of  which  were  very  useful  for  many  years. 

2William  Mahon,  of  the  Class  of  1782  (Princeton),  removed  to 
Kentucky;  he  seems  to  have  been  in  trouble  most  of  his  life.  See  Alex- 
ander, Princeton  College  in  the  Eighteenth  Century. 

3Of  this  first  graduating  class,  three  were  lawyers  and  two  ministers. 
One  of  the  lawyers  was  John  W.  Eppes,  who  beat  John  Randolph  for 
Congress  in  1813.    Mr.  Eppes  was  for  a  year  of  two  in  the  Senate.    He? 
was  a  relative  and  son-in-law  of  Thomas  Jefferson. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  35 

solved  that  Mr.  Wml  P.  Hunt  on  recommendation  from  Doer. 
Weatherspoon  and  Doer.  Smith  of  Princetown  be  admitted  to 
a  degree  of  Batchelor  of  the  liberal  arts,  honoris  gratia. 

1787.   Mar.  9.   Mr.  Sankey. 

Substitution  of  French  for  Greek  'has  been  found  to  produce 
an  unfavorable  effect  upon  the  students  with  respect  to  their 
improvement  in  science.'  Regulation  rescinded,  'except  that  they 
shall  not  be  examined  upon  more  Greek  than  the  Greek  Testa- 
ment, Lucian,  and  the  first  book  of  Xenophon,  provided  they 
shall  be  tolerably  acquainted  with  the  French  tongue/ 

1787.  June  28.   Mr.  Sankey. 

Degrees  conferred :  candidates  'members  of  the  late  class  which 
was  admitted  to  degrees  last  fall/  The  Revd.  Henry  Pattillp 
of  North  Carolina,  Master  of  Arts,  honoris  gratia — 'proposed 
to  the  Board  as  a  gentleman  upon  whom  it  would  be  proper 
to  confer  the  degree/1 

1787.  June  28.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Mr.  Drury  Lacy  to  take  the  inspection  of  the  College  build- 
ings ;  that  he  inspect  them  at  least  once  in  every  week,  and 
cause  the  students  in  the  rooms  when  he  finds  any  damage  com- 
mitted to  pay  for  the  repairs  immediately.  Capt.  Jas.  Morton 
to  have  the  care  of  the  College  buildings  in  vacancy.  Five 
shillings  to  be  deposited  with  the  Steward  by  entering  students 
as  a  fund  to  pay  for  damages. 

The  Board  no  longer  look  to  Capt.  Richard  Allen  for  the 
finishing  the  Common  Hall. 

Capt.  Jno.  Morton  to  purchase  a  box  of  glass  9x11  (sub- 
scriptions for  this  particular  purpose)   for  repair  of  windows. 

1788.  June  5.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Common  Hall  not  finished.  Committee  of  arbitration  appointed 
to  value  Captain  Allen's  work.  Capt.  Jno.  Morton,  collector  for 
the  College,  to  render  his  account  of  all  monies  received,  with 
vouchers. 

^atillo's  Sermons,  printed  at  Wilmington  [Del.]  in  1788,  contain  this 
acknowledgment — "I  cannot  allow  the  foregoing  little  treatise  to  see  the 
light  without  acquainting  the  public  how  greatly  I  am  obliged  to  my 
learned  and  pious  friend  President  Smith,  of  Hampden  Sydney,  for  the 
careful  perusal  he  has  given  my  manuscripts,  amidst  his  numerous  and 
important  avocations." 


36       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Mr.  James  Blythe,  a  member  of  the  Senior  Class,1  being  under 
an  absolute  necessity  of  visiting  Carolina  his  native  state  in 
the  course  of  the  summer  and  of  being  absent  at  the  examina- 
tion and  commencement  of  his  class  in  September  applied  to 
the  Board  for  a  diploma.  Degree  conferred,  'provided  he  review 
geography.' 

1788.  July  3.   Col.  Nash. 

The  Revd.  Mr.  Smith  gave  notice  to  the  board  that  he  had 
determined  to  remove  from  College  about  the  month  of  November 
next  to  his  plantation  in  the  neighbourhood ;  intending  to  devote 
much  less  of  his  time  to  College  business  than  he  has  hereto- 
fore done,  he  proposes  to  resign  his  office  should  the  Board 
prefer. 

The  Revd.  Mr.  Smith  repeated  his  proposal  of  continuing  to 
act  as  president  while  residing  at  his  plantation  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood; he  agrees  to  attend  College  three  times  a  week  and 
take  immediate  charge  of  the  Senior  Class.  The  Board  there- 
fore determine  to  appoint  Mr.  Drury  Lacy  vice  president  and 
vest  him  with  the  authority  of  president  in  the  absence  of  the 
Revd.  Mr.  Smith.  Tuition  money  to  be  divided:  2/5  to  Mr. 
Lacy,  2/5  to  an  assistant;  the  remainder  to  the  President. 

1788.  Sept.  28-29.  Colo.  Nash— Mr.  Sankey. 
Degrees  conferred,  [six  candidates]. 

Drury  Lacy,  A.  B.,  causa  meriti  'having  gone  through  a 
course  of  liberal  education  and  acted  as  Tutor  several  years 
in  the  College.' 

1789.  July  2.   Mr.  McRobert. 

The  Revd.  Mr.  Smith  informed  the  Board  that  he  had  em- 
ployed Mr.  David  Wiley,  a  graduate  from  New  Jersey  College2 
to  act  as  one  of  the  Masters  in  the  College,  since  the  beginning 
of  last  November,  but  that  he  had  not  been  regularly  initiated 
iinto  office  by  taking  the  oath. 

The  Revd.  Mr.  Smith,  president  of  the  College,  gives  notice 

,lTames  Blythe  (d.  1842),  with  David  Rice,  (a  Charter  Trustee  of  the 
College),  was  active  in  educational  affairs  in  the  west.  Dr.  Blythe  was 
from  1798  Professor  of  Mathematics,  Natural  Philosophy,  &c,  in  Tran- 
sylvania University,  Kentucky,  of  which  he  was  for  some  fifteen  years 
acting  President.  Towards  the  end  of  his  life  he  was  President  of 
South  Hanover   College,   Indiana. 

2David  Wiley  was  the  founder  of  the  Union  Society  at  Hampden 
Sidney  College.     He  became  a  minister  and  died  in  Pennsylvania  in  181 3. 

The  Union  Society  was,  so  far  as  appears,  the  earliest  Literary  Society 
in  the  Southern  States,  which  has  had  a  continuous  existence. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  37 

to  the  Board  that  he  shall  discontinue  the  office  of  president 
the  first  day  of  October  next. 

1789.   July  21.    Mr.  Nash. 

Members  present,  the  Honbl.  Paul  Carrington,  Esqr.,  Mr. 
Henry  &c  &c. 

Resolved,  that  the  Revd.  Mr.  Smith,  Mr.  McRobert,  Patrick 
Henry,  and  Francis  Watkins,  esqr.,  or  any  two  of  them,  be 
a  committee  to  correspond  by  letters  or  otherwise  with  the 
members  of  Congress  or  any  other  literary  characters  to  procure 
a  fit  person  to  act  as  president  for  the  College. 

Resolved,  that  the  Delegates  from  this  county  to  the  General 
Assembly  be  requested  to  use  their  influence  with  the  Legislature 
at  their  next  session  in  order  to  procure  surveyor's  fees  formerly 
appropriated  to  the  university  of  William  and  Mary  for  the  use 
of  the  College.  That  the  same  committee  endeavor  to  secure 
for  the  College  escheated  lands,  and  a  grant  of  money  formerly 
in  the  hands  of  the  vestry  of  the  parish  of  St.  Patrick.  Mr. 
Lacy  continued  as  vice  president. 

1789.  Sept.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Degrees  conferred.  [Three  candidates]1.  Tuition  money  to  be 
divided  between  the  Revd.  Mr.  Drury  Lacy,  Mr.  David  Wiley, 
and  an  assistant  if  employed. 

1790.  Jan.  19.    Capt.  Jno.  Morton. 

Colo.  Henry  recited  to  the  Board  the  contents  of  a  Bill  brought 
forw.d.  in  the  General  Assembly  at  the  last  session  by  himself, 
which  was  designed  to  give  a  certain  proportion  of  the  surveyors' 
fees  in  certain  districts  with  some  other  advantages  to  this  col- 
lege. Objection  was  made  in  the  Assembly  to  the  Bill  that  the 
intention  of  the  Board  had  not  been  advertised  agreeable  to 
an  order  of  the  House. 

No  answers  received  from  letters  to  members  of  Congress 
and  Drs.  Witherspoon  and  Smith  relative  to  securing  a  Presi- 
dent. 

Subscriptions  to  be  methodized. 

1790.    Mar.  1.    Mr.  McRobert. 

Mr.  Smith  represented  that  a  report  had  been  circulated  charg- 
ing the  officers  of  College  with  taking  unfair  and  underhanded 
methods  to  proselite  the  students  to  a  particular  sect. 

Mr.   David   Wiley  to   resign   as   Tutor  at  the   end  of   April. 

'Of  the  class  of  1789  were  William  H.  Cabell,  Governor  of  Virginia, 
&c,  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  Hill,  an  able  minister  and  polemical 
author. 


38       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES.  - 

The  Revd.  Mr.  Smith  and  Mr.  Lacy  to  take  the  earliest  oppor- 
tunity of  procuring  some  fit  person  to  act  as  a  tutor  in  his 
room. 

1790.    Mar.  16.    Mr.  McRobert. 

Inquiry  regarding  the  charge  of  unfair  methods  to  influence 
the  students  in  their  religious  principles  and  to  attach  them  to 
a  party.  Five  students  examined,  from  different  regions, 
'whether  they  had  ever  observed  any  attempts  in  the  president 
and  masters  to  proselyte  the  students  to  a  religious  party  or 
any  thing  like  influencing  their  minds  in  favour  of  any  particular 
denomination ;  when  they  universally  agreed  that  no  such  attempts 
have  ever  come  under  their  observations,  but  that  an  enlarged 
and  liberal  policy  respecting  religious  parties  had  invariably  been 
observed  in  conducting  the  seminary  of  Hampden  Sidney  during 
their  residence  at  that  place.' 

Ordered,  that  the  Revd.  Mr.  Smith  be  requested  to  publish 
the  result  of  this  inquiry. 

1790.    Sept.  2.   Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

John  B.  Scott  to  advertise  in  the  public  Gazette  that  the  Board 
design  to  petition  for  the  surveyors'  fees  in  counties  on  the 
south  side  of  James  River  and  below  the  mountains. 

The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy  to  have  possession  of  the  President's 
house  and  lands. 

The  Revd.  John  B.  Smith  to  preside  at  the  examination  of 
the  candidates  for  literary  degrees  in  October  next,  and  at  the 
Commencement. 

1790.   Oct.  19. 

Degrees  conferred.     [Three  candidates] 

1790.    Nov.  2.   Col.  Nash. 

Col.  Charles  Allen  appointed  Commissioner  to  confer  with 
the  Revd.  William  Graham,1  whether  he  will  accept  the  office 
of  President. 

1790.   Dec.  14.   Col.  Nash. 

Inquiry.  Examination  of  ten  of  the  students,  and  one  of  the 
masters,  respecting  a  complaint  of  the  diet,  particularly  in  the 
article  of  coffee. 

Mr.  John  Campbell,  one  of  the  Tutors,  gave  notice  that  he 
should  not  act  as  Tutor  longer  than  the  spring  vacancy. 

1William  Graham,  a  class  mate  (i773)  of  John  Blair  Smith's  at  Prince- 
ton was  at  this  time  Rector  of  Liberty  Hall  Academy  in  Rockbridge 
County. 


Patrick  Henry. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  39 

1791.   Mar.  22.  Mr.  McRobert. 

Subscriptions  due.     Mr.  Joseph  Venable  appointed  Collector 
at  5$  on  the  amount  of  all  monies  collected  or  bonded. 
The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy  to  take  the  care  of  the  library. 

1791.   Apr.  28.   The  Revd.  John  B.  Smith. 

Mr.  John  Campbell,1  a  Tutor  in  College  having  produced  a 
testimonial  from  the  Revd.  Archibald  Scott,  a  respectable  and 
learned  minister  of  the  gospel  in  Augusta,  of  his  having  finished 
a  course  of  academical  education  under  his  charge  and  that  he 
had  stood  an  honorable  public  examination  upon  the  Latin  and 
Greek  languages  and  the  liberal  arts  and  sciences.  Mr.  Smith 
having  also  assured  the  board  that  the  Revd.  Mr.  Patillo  of 
North  Carolina  whose  school  Mr.  Campbell  had  the  care  of  for 
a  considerable  time,  had  given  him  a  high  character  as  a  scholar 
and  a  teacher,  with  which  Mr.  Lacy  also  concurred;  the  board 
thought  proper  under  these  circumstances  and  for  these  reasons 
to  confer  on  him  the  degree  of  Batchelor  of  Arts,  honoris 
gratia. 

1791.   Sept.  29.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Degrees  conferred  [seven  candidates]2 — Mr.  McRobert  having 
been  appointed  at  a  former  meeting  to  preside  for  conferring 
degrees  at  this  commencement. 

1791.   Oct.  18.   Mr.  McRobert. 

Meeting  held  at  Prince  Edward  Court  House. — present,  the 
Honble.  Paul  Carrington,  Esqr.,  Patrick  Henry,  Esqr.,  the  Revd. 
John  B.  Smith  &c  &c. 

^ohn  Poage  Campbell,  M.  D.,  was  a  minister  in  Kentucky  and  Ohio, 
and  a  rather  prolific  author.  He  died  in  1814.  "In  the  year  1812,  while 
I  was  a  member  of  Yale  College,  Dr.  Campbell  visited  Connecticut  and 
passed  a  few  days  in  New  Haven.  Dr.  Dwight,  contrary  to  his  ordinary 
practice,  asked  him  to  preach  in  the  College  Chapel.  Dr.  Dwight  ex- 
pressed great  satisfaction  in  making  Dr.  Campbell's  acquaintance,  and 
spoke  of  him  as  a  remarkably  accomplished  scholar  and  divine." 
Sprague,  Annals  of  the  American  Pulpit,  III,  628.  Dr.  Campbell's 
Letters  to  a  Gentleman  at  the  Bar  was  a  searching  criticism  of  Erasmus 
Darwin's  theories,  showing  how  Democritus  and  others  had  held  similar 
views.  Dr.  Campbell  was  an  anti-slavery  man.  See  Thomas  Marshall 
Green,  Historic  Families  of  Kentucky.     Cincinnati,   1889,  pp.   50-60. 

2This  was  a  distinguished  class,  among  the  graduates,  the  Hon.  Geo. 
M.  Bibb  (Secretary  of  War,  &c.  ),  the  Hon.  James  Jones,  member  of 
Congress,  &c,  and  Dr.  Waddell,  President  of  the  University  of  Georgia. 
William  Henry  Harrison,  President  of  the  United  States,  was  of  this 
class,  not  a  graduate. 


40       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

It  was  unanimously  agreed  that  the  office  of  President  should 
be  offered  to  the  Revd.  William  Graham  of  Rockbridge.  John 
B.  Smith  and  Samuel  W.  Venable  to  write  to  him  on  the  subject. 

The  congregations  of  Cumberland,  Briery,  and  Cub  Creek  to 
be  requested  to  unite  their  interest  with  the  Board  in  securing 
Mr.  Graham  as  President,1  and  collegiate  minister  with  Mr. 
Lacy. 


1792.   Apr.  2.    Mr.  McRobert. 

Members  of  the  Board  to  make  enquiry  in  the  counties  of 
Halifax,  Charlotte,  Lunenburg,  Mecklenburg,  Prince  Edward, 
Campbell,  Henry,  Pittsylvania,  and  Franklin,  for  such  estates 
as  may  be  subject  to  the  law  of  escheat  and  forfeiture.2 

Ordered,  that  Colo.  Joel  Watkins  and  Colo.  Wm.  Morton  do 
inform  the  Revd.  Wm.  Graham  that  this  Board  had  a  meeting 
to  consider  their  prospect  of  raising  a  sum  of  money  for 
the  use  of  the  colledge  to  purchase  an  apparatus  and  to  put  it 
in  a  situation  to  promise  usefulness,  that  they  determined  they 
could  be  safe  to  engage  that  two  hundred  pounds  shall  be  raised, 
and  that  they  have  hopes  of  raising  much  more  if  they  could 
have  any  assurance  that  he  would  take  the  charge  of  the  College. 

Every  member  of  the  Board  to  take  subscription  papers  and 
endeavor  to  raise  by  subscription  what  money  they  can  for  the 
use  of  the  Colledge. 

Committee  to  petition  the  General  Assembly  for  a  sum  of 
money  now  lying  in  the  county  in  private  hands  which  was 
made  by  the  sale  of  the  glebe  lands  of  the  Parish  of  Saint 
Patrick  some  years  ago. 


*An  excellent  choice — William  Graham  was  a  very  able  man.  He 
might  have  come  to  Hampden  Sidney  but  for  a  complication  of  cir- 
cumstances. The  Synod  of  Virginia,  recently  formed,  was  already 
looking  to  the  establishment  of  a  theological  school.  Mr.  Graham,  al- 
though he  must  have  been  a  good  deal  attached  to  Rockbridge  county, 
was  influenced  by  this  opportunity  to  do  more  in  the  way  of  training 
theological  students.  The  Synod  did  not  prescribe  his  action,  but 
when  the  theological  school  was  to  go  to  Lexington,  Mr.  Graham  pre- 
ferred not  to  leave  his  post  there.  See  Henry  Ruffner,  Washington  and 
Lee   University  Historical  Papers,  I,  44-45. 

"Escheats,  which  the  Board  of  Trustees  often  had  in  its  eye,  became 
a  few  years  afterwards  (1810)  one  of  the  sources  of  the  State  Literary 
Fund — "certain  escheats,  forfeitures,  and  penalties  appropriated  to  the 
encouragement  of  learning." 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  41 

1792.  Aug.  21.  Jas.  Allen,  Sr. 

[Patrick  Henry  present] 

Mr.  Waddell,  a  Tutor  at  Colledge,1  gave  notice  to  the  Board 
that  he  wished  to  resign  his  office  at  the  end  of  this  term. 

Capt.  John  Morton  and  Col.  Charles  Allen  appointed  com- 
missioners to  attend  the  Synod  of  Virginia  at  Winchester  on 
behalf  of  the  Board,  and  that  they  state  to  Synod  and  to  Mr. 
Graham  our  situation  and  our  prospect  of  corrfplying  with  the 
conditions  proposed  by  Mr.  Graham. 

Damages  on  the  part  of  students  to  be  chargeable  on  the 
officers  of  college  if  they  neglect  to  carry  into  execution  the 
laws  of  college. 

y 

1792.   Oct.  22.   Mr.  McRobert. 

James  Morton  qualifies  as  Trustee.  Commissioners  appointed 
to  attend  the  Synod  of  Virginia,  on  the  business  of  a  president 
to  the  Colledge,  reported  that  they  had  fulfilled  their  appointment 
and  that  the  Revd.  William  Graham  had  returned  his  answer 

Fort  Hill,  May  19,  1849. 

*I  comply  with  pleasure  with  your  request  to  give  you  a  brief  statement 
containing  a  summary  of  the  character  of  the  late  Rev.  Dr.  Moses 
Waddel.  I  knew  him  well.  Under  his  tuition  I  prepared  myself  for 
College. 

It  was  as  a  teacher  that  he  was  the  most  distinguished.  In  that  char- 
acter, he  stands  almost  unrivalled.  Indeed,  he  may  be  justly  considered 
as  the  father  of  classical  education,  in  the  upper  country  of  South 
Carolina  and  Georgia.  His  excellence  in  that  character  depended  not 
so  much  on  extensive  or  profound  learning,  as  a  felicitous  combination 
of  qualities  for  the  government  of  boys,  and  communicating  to  them 
what  he  knew.  He  was  particularly  successful  in  exciting  emulation 
among  them,  and  in  obtaining  the  good  will  of  all  but  the  worthless. 
The  best  evidence  of  his  high  qualities  as  a  teacher  is  his  success.  Among 
his  pupils  are  to  be  found  a  large  portion  of  the  eminent  men  of  the 
State  of  Georgia.  In  this  State  it  is  sufficient  to  name  McDuffie,  Legare, 
Pettigrew,  and  my  colleague  in  the  Senate,  Butler.  To  these  many  others 
of  distinction  might  be  added.  His  pupils  in  Georgia  who  have  dis- 
tinguished themselves  are  numerous.  In  this  list  are  to  be  found  the 
names  of  W.  H.  Crawford,  Longstreet,  &c.  It  is  in  the  character  of  a 
teacher  especially  that  he  will  long  be  remembered  as  a  benefactor  of 
the  country. 

With  great  respect, 

I   am  your  obedient   servant, 

John  C.  Calhoun. 

[Sprague,   Annals   of  the  American  Pulpit,  IV,   67.] 


42       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

that  he  conceived  it  his  duty  to  remain  in  his  present  charge, 
which  was  read  by  the  Clerk. 

1792.   Nov.  1.   Mr.  McRobert. 

The  Clerk  to  endeavor  by  every  means  in  his  power  to  get 
information  how  far  the  late  subscriptions  were  unconditional 
and  how  far  they  depended  on  Mr.  Graham's  acceptance  of  the 
presidency  of  the  College. 

The  office  of  vice  president  secured  to  the  Revd.  Drury  Lacy 
for  the  term  of  four  years  from  the  present  time. 

Colo.  Charles  Allen  unanimously  appointed  Treasurer  in  the 
room'  of  Mr.  Francis  Watkins. 

1792.  Nov.  12.   Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy,  who  has  at  present  the  charge  of  the 
Colledge  with  office  of  vice  president,  attended  the  Board  and 
desired  that  the  Board  would  think  of  some  suitable  person  who 
should  be  associated  with  him  in  the  charge  of  the  Colledge  with 
equal  authority,  to  take  an  equal  share  of  the  labour,  and  have 
an  equal  share  of  the  emoluments. 

Mr.  Archibald  Alexander  being  proposed  as  a  proper  person, 
ordered,  that  a  committee  write  to  Mr.  Alexander;  and  that 
the  same  committee  lay  the  matter  before  the  different  congrega- 
tions about  now  to  be  associated. 

1793.  Apr.  9.  Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

No  resolution  taken  on  Mr.  Alexander's  letter  stating  his  ob- 
jections to  accepting  the  invitation  of  the  Board. 

As  it  is  judged  that  gunning  and  keeping  dogs  are  amusements 
at  all  times  inconvenient  for  students  while  they  are  at  College, 
resolved,  that  from  and  after  the  end  of  next  vacancy  no  student 
shall  be  allowed  to  keep  either  guns  or  dogs. 

Whereas  it  is  represented  to  this  Board  that  the  servants 
who  are  allowed  to  attend  the  students  at  College  very  often 
commit  great  abuses  by  going  from  room  to  room  and  stealing 
or  taking  the  property  of  the  students ;  ordered  that  no  such 
servant  on  any  pretence  whatever  be  allowed  to  go  into  any  of 
the  rooms  of  college  but  that  in  which  his  master  lives. 

Complaint  of  George  Moore,  a  student,  against  Mr.  James  H. 
Rice,  one  of  the  teachers  at  College,  for  exercising  over  him 

^he  delay  had  been  very  disadvantageous  to  Hampden  Sidney  College. 
And  Mr.  Graham  gained  very  little  by  staying  in  Lexington.  The  scheme 
for  a  theological  school  not  only  came  to  nothing,  but  was  a  positive 
injury  to  Liberty  Hall  Academy.  "This  gave  the  first  impulse  to  those 
charges  of  sectarianism  against  the  institution  which  continued  long  to 
pursue  its  career,  and  to  operate  injuriously  upon  its  interests." 

Dr.  Henry  Ruffner,   W.  and  L.  Historical  Papers,  No.  i,  p.  46. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  43 

unreasonable  authority  and  beating  him  without  cause :  decision — 
George  Moore,  much  to  blame.     Mr.  Rice  imprudent. 

1793.  Apr.  25.   Mr.  McRobert. 

A  letter  read  from  Mr.  Archd.  Alexander  to  the  Board,  in 
which  he  declines  to  accept  their  invitation.  Mr.  Lacy  advised 
and  requested  to  procure  some  other  suitable  person  to  join 
with  him.  It  is  the  wish  of  the  Board  that  Mr.  Lacy  would 
take  the  advice  of  the  Revd.  Doctor  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith, 
and  the  Revd.  John  Blair  Smith,  who  he  expects  to  see  shortly, 
on  this  subject.  Mr.  Lacy  being  acquainted  with  the  funds  of 
the  College  will  be  left  to  his  own  prudence  in  making  his  pro- 
posals. 

1793.   May  21.    Mr.  McRobert. 

It  being  represented  to  the  Board  that  the  buildings  of  College 
were  in  a  ruinous  situation,  in  a  great  measure  owing  to  injuries 
done  to  them  with  design  by  the  students  or  some  other  person, 
ordered  therefore,  that  Col.  Charles  Allen  and  the  Revd.  Archd. 
McRobert  be  appointed  to  wait  on  the  officers  of  College,  to  state 
to  them  the  sense  of  this  Board  on  this  subject,  and  seriously 
to  expostulate  with  them  on  the  necessity  of  attending  to  this 
most  necessary  part  of  their  duty,  they  are  also  desired  to  refer 
them  to  the  laws  of  College  relating  to  this  matter. 

1793.   Oct.  1.  Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

The  Treasurer  to  collect  thirty  pounds  which  is  due  in  Novem- 
ber next  for  the  rent  of  French's  Store,  and  that  he  pay  it  to 
Nathaniel  Venable  in  part  of  a  debt  due  him  from  the  College.1 

1793.    Oct.  17.   Thomas  Scott. 

The  Board  taking  into  consideration  the  declining  state  of  the 
College,  and  thinking  it  may  be  partly  owing  to  Mr.  Lacy's  being 
obliged  to  be  much  absent  from  the  College  in  order  to  fulfil  his 
engagements  to  the  several  congregations  with  which  he  is  con- 
nected, have  thought  proper  to  appoint  Charles  Allen,  Joseph 
Venable,  Richard  N.  Venable,  and  Samuel  W.  Venable,  or  any 
two  of  them,  a  committee  to  wait  on  Mr.  Lacy,  and  to  converse 
freely  with  him  on  the  subject,  and  to  inform  him  that  this 
board  is  decidedly  of  opinion  that  under  present  circumstances 
his  engagements  with  the  College  and  the  Congregations  are 
incompatible. 

xThis  considerable  debt  to  Nathaniel  Venable  must  be  the  chief  ground 
for  the  statement  that  he  was  the  "real  founder  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College."     Alexander  Brown,   The  Cabells  and  their  Kin.  p.  269. 


44       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1794.  Apr.  2.  Col.  William  Morton. 

Mr.  Lacy  attended  the  Board.  The  Board  on  mature  delib- 
eration determined  that  if  he  will  engage  no  more  than  half  his 
time  to  preach  from  College  on  Sabbath  days,  and  can  as  he  has 
proposed  get  an  able  assistant,  if  he  can  avoid  these  weekly 
calls  from  the  College  that  have  lately  been  so  frequent  in  these 
congregations;  that  then  they  are  satisfied  with  his  continuance 
and  that  he  may  promise  himself  success. 

Committee  to  finish  the  plaistering  of  the  first  and  second 
story  and  the  passage  in  the  upper  story,  to  paint  the  outdoors, 
windows  and  cornice. 

The  Board  having  observed  that  the  College  buildings  have 
been  much  injured  by  playing  fives  or  ball  against  the  walls  have 
thought  proper  to  forbid  this  practice. 

1795.  Jan.  7.  Thomas  Scott. 

Colo.  Charles  Allen  produced  and  read  to  the  Board  the  tran- 
script of  a  law  passed  by  the  General  Assembly  at  their  last  ses- 
sion, vesting  in  the  Board  for  the  use  of  the  College  the  lands 
whereof  Robert  Rutledge  died  seized  in  Prince  Edward  County, 
and  which  had  escheated  to  the  Commonwealth,  [about  1200 
acres]. 

Committee  to  get  the  President's  house  at  College  put  in  good 
repair,  and  permitted  to  collect  from  the  late  subscriptions  to 
the  College. 

1795.  Apr.  1.  Thomas  Scott. 

The  Revd.  Archd.  Alexander  elected  Trustee.  Resignation  of 
the  Revd.  Archd.  McRobert.1 

1795.   Oct.  20.  Thomas  Scott. 

Ordered  that  the  Steward  be  at  liberty  during  the  ensuing 
session,  on  account  of  the  present  high  price  of  wheat,  to  furnish 
the  students  with  only  one  third  of  the  bread  of  wheat,  in  lieu  of 
one  half  mentioned  in  his  agreement. 

1795.  Nov.  14.   Colo.  Thomas  Scott. 

On  hearing  the  complaints  lodged  against  the  Steward,  Mr. 
Charles  Jones,  by  the  students,  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  board  that 

JMr.  McRobert  lived  until  1807.  He  had  come  over  from  Scotland 
under  the  Establishment;  was  minister  of  Dale  Parish,  Chesterfield 
(where  at  the  beginning  of  the  Revolution  he  proved  himself  a  stout 
American),  settling  in  St.  Patrick's  Parish  (Prince  Edward  Co.)  about 
the  time  of  the  founding  of  the  College.  What  with  the  loosening  of 
the  old  ties,  he  gradually  became  a  Presbyterian,  but  not  until  1787. 

See,  Meade,  Old  Churches  and  Families,  I,  448;  II,  24. 


Samuel  W.  Venable. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  45 

the  conduct  of  the  said  Jones  has  not  been  agreeable  to  his  con- 
tract, and  that  it  will  be  for  the  benefit  of  the  College  that  the 
said  Charles  Jones  be  removed  from  the  office  of  Steward.  It 
is  therefore  ordered  that  the  said  Jones  no  longer  remain  as 
Steward.  Ordered,  that  the  students  be  at  liberty  to  contract 
with  any  one  to  board  them  until  a  Steward  can  be  had.1 

1795.  Dec.  22.  John  Morton. 

On  motion  to  take  the  sense  of  the  Board  on  the  subject  of 
the  vice  president's  being  continued  in  his  office  after  the  expira- 
tion of  the  term  for  which  he  is  at  present  engaged;  Resolved, 
that  the  Board  are  of  opinion  that  it  will  not  be  for  the  interest 
of  the  College  to  employ  him  after  the  end  of  the  term  aforesaid, 
and  it  is  ordered  that  the  Clerk  furnish  him  with  a  copy  of  this 
Resolution. 

Ordered,  that  Paul  Carrington,  Senr.,  Esqr.,  Francis  Watkins, 
Samuel  W.  Venable,  and  Abraham  B.  Venable  be  a  committee 
to  make  inquiry  for  some  suitable  person  to  take  charge  of  the 
College  as  Tutor  when  the  term  for  which  Mr.  Lacy  is  engaged 
has  expired,  and  also  to  make  enquiries  for  a  suitable  person  who 
will  be  disposed  to  undertake  the  office  of  President. 

1796.  Apr.  5.   John  Nash. 

As  it  has  appeared  to  this  board  that  the  President  of  the 
United  States  has  the  appropriation  of  a  number  of  shares  in 
the  James  River  Navigation  Company,  and  that  the  General 
Assembly  of  this  State,  when  consulted  by  the  President,  have 
recommended  it  to  him  to  appropriate  them-  to  the  support  of 
some  College  in  the  upper  parts  of  the  State,  it  is  thought  best  to 
address  the  President  on  this  subject  and  to  solicit  him  in  behalf 
of  the  College.2 

Ordered  that  William  Cowan,  Richard  N.  Venable,  and  Samuel 
W.  Venable  be  a  Committee  to  draw  up  and  forward  the  address 
to  the  President  and  that  they  solicit  the  assistance  of  any  gen- 
tleman of  their  acquaintance  who  they  suppose  can  render  the 
College  service  in  this  business. 

1How  important  was  the  office  of  Steward.  The  College,  it  may  be 
imagined,  would  not  have  become  so  nearly  extinct  at  this  period,  had 
the  Steward  been  unexceptionable. 

aThis  stock  went  to  Liberty  Hall  Academy  which  thus  became  Wash- 
ington Academy.  The  Legislature  of  Virginia,  in  retiring  this  stock, 
agreed  to  pay  to  the  holders  six  per  cent  interest  on  the  sum  of  fifty 
thousand  dollars,  annually  forever.  Catalogue  of  Alumni,  Washington 
and  Lee  University,  1888.  p.  15. 


46       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1796.   June  1.   Thomas  Scott. 

Richard  N.  Venable  appointed  to  wait  on  the  Revd.  John  Blair 
of  Richmond,1  as  the  Board  are  anxious  to  engage  him  to  take 
Charge  of  the  College  when  Mr.  Lacy  gives  it  up. 

1796.  Aug.  13.  Thomas  Scott. 

The  College  may  shortly  be  left  without  any  person  to  manage 
or  take  care  of  it.  The  Board  have  determined  to  offer  to  the 
Revd.  Archibald  Alexander  the  presidency  of  the  College.  The 
Board  will  engage  to  him  £50  per  annum  from  the  funds  of  the 
College,  and  the  tuition  until  it  shall  amount  with  this  to 
£100  shall  be  divided  between  him  and  one  assistant;  any  overplus 
to  be  appropriated  as  to  the  Board  shall  seem  best  either  in 
employing  other  assistants,  or  for  other  necessary  purposes. 

1796.    Sept.  1.    Thomas  Scott. 

Committee  appointed  to  procure  some  suitable  person  to  take 
charge  of  the  College  during  the  winter  session,  Mr.  Alexander 
having  expressed  a  wish  to  decline  giving  a  final  answer  till 
November. 

1796.   Oct.  27.  Thomas  Scott. 

At  a  Board  of  Trustees  for  the  College  of  Hampden  Sydney 
held  at  the  College.  Present,  Colo.  Thomas  Scott,  Messrs.  Charles 
Allen,  Francis  Watkins,  Joseph  Venable,  Richard  N.  Venable,, 
Jacob  Morton,  and  Samuel  W.  Venable. 

Mr.  Hugh  Dixon  appeared  as  a  candidate  for  the  first  degree 
in  the  arts,  and  having  stood  an  examination  before  the  Board 
on  a  variety  of  subjects,  it  is  agreed  to  admit  him  to  the  degree 
of  Bachelor  of  Arts. 

1796.   Nov.  21.  John  Nash. 

The  Revd.  Archibald  Alexander  met  the  Board  this  day  accord- 
ing to  his  own  appointment  to  give  them  his  answer  to  their  invi- 
tation to  take  charge  of  the  College  as  President,  and  he  gave 
them  for  answer  that  he  would  accept  their  invitation,  provided 
the  Board  would  be  satisfied  that  he  should  defer  taking  the 
actual  charge  of  the  College  until  the  month  of  April  next.  The 
Board  determined  to  accept  of  his  proposal,  and  to  wait  till  that 

^ohn  Durborrow  Blair  (Princeton,.  1775), — son  of  the  Rev.  John 
Blair,  uncle  of  John  Blair  Smith.  John  D.  Blair's  memory  is  preserved 
in  a  very  unusual  book,  The  Two  Parsons,  by  George  Wythe  Munford, 
Richmond,    1884. 

Mr.  Blair  was  the  great  grandfather  of  Professor  Walter  Blair  of 
the  College. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  47 

time,  when  they  will  expect  him  to  take  charge  of  the  College, 
but  they  wish  and  expect  that  if  he  can  find  it  convenient  he 
will  come  at  an  earlier  period.  And  in  case  they  get  a  teacher 
to  carry  on  the  business  of  College  this  winter  they  will  expect 
him  to  give  it  such  occasional  supervision  as  he  shall  find  con- 
venient with  his  other  engagements. 

1796.  Dec.  19.  Thomas  Scott. 

Agreed  on  the  motion  of  Mr.  Jarney,  the  Steward,  to  raise 
the  rate  of  boarding,  that  it  shall  be  raised  to  twenty  pounds  in- 
stead of  sixteen  pounds,  until  the  first  of  November  next. 

Samuel  W.  Venable,  from  the  Committee  to  employ  a  teacher, 
reported  that  he  and  Mr.  Francis  Watkins,  part  of  that  Com- 
mittee, had  contracted  on  the  part  of  the  Board  with  Mr.  John 
Rice1  to  act  as  a  teacher  in  College  till  the  last  of  April  next, 
for  which  they  have  engaged  that  he  shall  receive  twenty  five 
pounds. 

1797.  May  31.    Thomas  Scott. 

Agreement  with  Mr.  John  H.  Rice  for  the  next  term  to  act 
in  the  office  of  Tutor  at  twenty  five  pounds  for  the  term. 

Richard  N.  Venable  and  Charles  Scott  a  Committee  to  get  a 
law  passed  at  the  next  session  of  the  General  Assembly  authoriz- 
ing a  Lottery  to  raise  a  sum  not  exceeding  £4000,  in  order  to 
increase  the  funds  of  the  College. 

Present,  the  Rev.  Archibald  Alexander,  President,  who  this 
day  appeared  and  entered  on  his  office. 

On  motion  by  Mr.  Alexander,  Maj.  James  Morton  is  appointed 
in  future  to  receive  the  tuition,  room  rent,  and  deposit  trom  such 
students  as  shall  wish  to  enter  College,  and  grant  them  receipts 
for  the  same. 

Room  rent  three  dollars  pr.  annum. 

1797.  Sept.  25.  The  Revd.  Matthew  Lyle. 

Price  of  boarding  continued  at  £20.  On  a  representation  that 
gaming  is  permitted  and  carried  on  at  the  tenement  of  the  Col- 
lege commonly  called  the  Old  Stores  contrary  to  agreement,  re- 
solved that  the  tenant  be  informed  that  the  Trustees  cannot  but 
hear  such  reports  with  great  concern,  and  that  they  earnestly 
request  him  to  silence  and  do  away  the  force  of  these  reports  if 

^ohn  Holt  Rice  began  his  connection  with  Hampden  Sidney  College  at 
the  beginning  of  the  winter  session  of  1796,  and  was  officially  con- 
nected with  it  for  more  than  thirty  years  thereafter.  He  was  for  the 
rest  of  his  life  greatly  interested  in  the  College,  the  good  of  which  was 
furthered  by  him  in  many  ways.  The  College  may  count  him  among  its 
founders  and  authors. 


48       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

they  are  false,  and  if  they  are  true,  they  beg  he  will  prevent  the 
occasion  of  them  in  future. 

Ordered,  that  an  advertisement  be  published  in  one  of  the 
Richmond  and  one  of  the  Petersburg  papers  for  a  few  weeks, 
informing  the  public  of  the  time  when  the  next  term  begins,  the 
price  of  boarding,  tuition  &c. 

1797.  Nov.  27.  Thomas  Scott. 

Letter  received  from  the  Trustees  of  Liberty  Hall,  asking  as- 
sistance. Commjittee  appointed  to  draw  up  a  remonstrance  to 
the  next  General  Assembly  to  repeal  an  act  passed  at  the  last 
session  of  Assembly,  transforming  the  Academy  of  Liberty 
Hall  into  a  College,  known  by  the  name  of  Washington  College 
in  Virginia,  and  appointing  a  set  of  visitors  to  the  displacing 
the  former  Trustees  of  the  Academy.1  The  above  remonstrance 
to  be  used  by  the  members  to  the  Assembly  from  Prince  Edward 
or  not  at  their  pleasure. 

1798.  Apr.  26.   Thomas  Scott. 

Price  of  tuition  in  future  to  be  twenty  dollars  instead  of  five 
pounds.  Notice  of  this  alteration  to  be  given  to  the  students 
before  their  departure  from  College,  and  to  be  advertised  in 
the  Virginia  Gazette  as  early  as  possible. 

Plaistering  of  the  upper  story  of  the  College  to  be  finished 
and  the  roof  repaired. 

The  sum  received  by  Mr.  Alexander  for  the  use  of  the  books 
of  the  Library,  or  so  much  thereof  as  is  necessary,  to  be  appro- 
priated for  the  payment  of  the  price  of  the  premiums  that  have 
been  distributed  to<  the  students. 

1798.   Sept.  18.   Thomas  Scott. 

A  very  great  inconveniency  has  arisen  from  the  irregular 
attendance  of  the  students  after  vacancy,  and  a  law  which  was 
made  to  remedy  that  evil  has  not  been  attended  to. 

Ordered,  that  the  law  be  strictly  executed.  It  is  recommended 
to  the  president  to  explain  this  matter  particularly  to  the  students 
before  they  leave  College. 

Fifteen  pounds  allowed  Mr.  Alexander  for  salary  paid  Mr. 
James  Aiken  as  an  assistant  teacher  the  last  session.  The  Presi- 
dent having  found  it  necessary  to  employ  Mr.  James  Aiken  as 
an  assistant  teacher  it  is  agreed  by  the  board  that  twenty  four 

^he  Legislature  was  complaisant  and  a  Dartmouth  College  case  was 
avoided.  These  are  interesting  matters.  The  question  presents  itself, 
how  much  of  an  advantage  was  it  educationally  for  a  State  to  be  ad- 
mitted into  the  Union  after  1800?     Also,  what  exactly  is  Conservatism? 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  49 

pounds  be  allowed  to  him  as  a  salary  for  the  next  session  at  Col- 
lege, and  that  this  sum  be  paid  out  of  the  money  arising  from 
tuition  after  the  payment  of  his,  the  president's,  and  Mr.  Rice's 
salary. 

Ordered,  that  Mr.  William  Cowan1  cause  an  advertisement  to 
be  published  in  some  of  the  Richmond  Gazettes,  and  in  the 
Petersburg  Gazette  informing  the  public  that  the  College  is  in 
suitable  repair  to  receive  students,  and  of  the  time  when  the 
next  term  will  commence. 

1798.  Dec.  29.  Col.  Charles  Allen. 

Agreed,  that  the  Board  will  again  attempt  to  raise  some 
money  by  subscription  for  the  purpose  of  repairing  the  College 
buildings,  and  for  purchasing  a  Philosophical  and  Mathematical 
apparatus.  It  is  therefore  ordered,  that  Richard  N.  Venable,  the 
Revd.  Archibald  Alexander,  and  Samuel  W.  Venable  be  a  com- 
mittee to  draw  a  proper  form  of  subscription  and  to  have  copies 
made  out  and  distributed  to  the  different  Trustees,  and  to  such 
other  friends  of  the  College  as  they  suppose  will  interest  them- 
selves to  procure  contributions  for  its  use. 

1799.  Apr.  20.  Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

Mr.  Nathaniel  Jarney,  the  present  Steward,  gives  notice  that 
he  shall  resign  his  office  at  the  end  of  the  present  year. 

Mr.  James  Aiken,  for  reasons  appearing  to  the  Board,  is  al- 
lowed thirty  six  pounds  for  the  present  session,  instead  of 
twenty  four  pounds,  and  in  the  same  proportion  for  the  next 
session. 

Mr.  Alexander  mentioned  to  the  board  that  it  would  be  for 
the  interest  of  the  College  to  have  one  more,  assistant  than  he 
has  at  present,  and  it  is  supposed  that  the  money  arising  from 
tuition  will  be  sufficient  to  pay  the  salaries  of  the  present  number 
and  one  in  addition. 

1799.  Aug.  17.    Francis  Watkins. 

Meeting  called  at  the  request  of  Mr.  Martin  Smith  of  this 
neighborhood  who  charged   several   students   with  going  to  his 

1William  Cowan,  of  Lunenburg,  a  lawyer,  "was  no  orator,  but  in  cases 
requiring  legal  acumen  and  judgment,  he  was  by  many  preferred  to 
Patrick  Henry,  with  whom  he  practiced  in  the  same  courts  for  many 
years,  living  in  habits  of  intimacy  with  that  great  man.  When  the  war 
was  ended,  he  was  almost  entirely  occupied  in  collecting  moneys  due 
to  the  Scotch  merchants,  who  had  generally  gone  off  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Revolution.  He  was  deeply  sensible  of  the  evils  of  slavery, 
and  one  day  said  to  me  that  there  was  a  secret  policy  in  the  minds  of 
some  leading  men  in  the  State,  to  tax  slaves  very  heavily,  so  as  by 
degrees  to  render  them  unprofitable."  The  Life  of  Archibald  Alexander, 
Ed.  1855,   139-141. 


50       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

peach  orchard  on  Thursday  night,  and  there  shooting  his  dog 
and  shooting  at  his  overseer.1  The  students  were  called  before 
the  Board,  and  Mr.  Smith  was  called  upon  to  produce  his  testi- 
mony, and  after  hearing  the  evidence  produced  by  him,  the 
board  were  unanimously  of  opinion  that  no  part  of  the  charge 
was  supported. 


1799.  Sept.  23.  Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

The  students  of  the  College  prohibited  from  attending,  Or  by 
any  means  being  seen  at  any  fives  battery  or  any  other  place 
where  sporting  or  games  are  carried  on. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Alexander,  it  is  ordered  that  the  College 
house  be  enclosed  by  a  good  post  and  rail  fence. 

Comfriittee  appointed  to  draw  a  memorial  and  get  it  presented 
to  the  General  Assembly,  stating  the  true  situation  of  the  Col- 
lege and  soliciting  assistance. 

1799.   Sept.  26.   Francis  Watkins. 

Degrees  conferred — 

Robert  Dobbins  and  Benjamin  Montgomery.2 

[This  valedictory  address  was  probably  spoken  by  Mont- 
gomery. It  appears  in  Vol.  II  (1806)  of  the  Virginia  Religious 
Magazine,  p.  284  fL,  edited  by  Conrad  Speece,  for  a  year  or  two 
Tutor  at  Hampden  Sidney  College.  It  is  evident  from  this  ad- 
dress that  the  College  had  been  thoroughly  revived  by  President 
Alexander — 

To  the  Editors  of  the  Virginia  Religious  Magazine: 
Gentlemen, 

Looking  over  my  papers  I  found  the  following  address,  com- 
posed for,  and  delivered  by  a  young  gentleman  of  South  Caro- 
lina, several  years  ago,  at  his  leaving  the  College  of  Hampden 
Sidney.  Its  object  is  to  inculcate  good  morals,  and  a  diligent 
pursuit  of  useful  knowledge.  Should  you  think  it  deserving, 
please  to  give  it  a  place  in  the  Magazine. 

Philander  [CONRAD  SPEECE] 

*A  fragment  of  narrative  verse  about  Martin  Smith — very  ancient, 
since  the  subject  went  West  to  Kentucky  before  1816— has  come  down. 
The  comedy  and  topical  farce  were  early  in  vogue  at  Hampden  Sidney 
as  part  of  the  exercises  on  public  occasions. 

2Professor  of  Philosophy  and  Logic,  College  of  South  Carolina,  d.  1823. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  51 


A  Valedictory  Address 

The  days  of  my  academical  studies  are  completed.  The  period 
is  arrived  when  I  must  bid  a  final  adieu  to  friends  whom  I 
love,  and  to  scenes,  the  remembrance  of  which  will  never  be 
erased  from  my  mind.  The  task  is  painful,  but  it  must  be 
attempted;  and  I  request  the  indulgence  of  my  audience  while 
I  address  myself  more  particularly  to  those  with  whom  I  have 
been  so  lately  and  so  intimately  connected. 

My  Dear  Fellow  Students, 

The  bonds  which  have  united  us  are  now  about  to  be  dissolved ; 
the  curtain  is  now  to  be  dropped  which  will  separate  us,  perhaps 
forever.  Permit  me  on  this  interesting  occasion  to  leave  with 
you  a  few  reflections,  the  truth  and  importance  of  which  are 
deeply  impressed  on  my  own  mind.  Accept  this  last  proof  of 
attachment,  the  greatest  of  which  I  am  capable.     *     *     * 

To  the  President 

Honoured  and  Dear  Sir, 

When  I  am  about  to  leave  this  place,  no  longer  to  enjoy  the 
benefit  of  your  instructions,  it  is  a  pleasing  duty  to  express  in  this 
publick  manner  my  grateful  sense  of  the  many  obligations  you 
have  conferred  upon  me.  Your  mildness  and  condescension  in 
the  execution  of  the  duties  of  your  office,  as  President  of  this  in- 
stitution, your  unwearied  attention  to  the  improvement  of  the 
students  here  in  knowledge  and  good  morals,  merit  the  highest 
affection  and  respect  from  them  and  from  the  publick.  The  wise 
and  the  virtuous  will  not  withhold  the  tribute  so  justly  due.  But 
I  will  spare  your  sensibility  the  pain  of  a  particular  detail  on 
this  subject.  The  approbation  of  your  own  heart  is  infinitely 
more  pleasing  to  you  than  the  highest  praise  of  others,  though 
most  deservedly  bestowed.  With  the  warmest  wishes  that  you 
may  continue  to  enjoy  the  blessings  of  health  and  repose,  and 
that  you  may  be  eminently  useful  in  the  work,  so  delightful  to 
yourself  and  so  important  to  mankind,  of  training  up  youth  in 
the  way  in  which  they  should  go,  I  bid  you,  honored  and  dear  sir 
adieu. 

To  the  Trustees. 

Permit  me,  gentlemen,  on  this  occasion  to  congratulate  you  as 
trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney,  on  the  flourishing  state  of  this 
seminary  under  your  care.  Your  diligent  attention  to  the  duties 
attached  to  your  office  does  not  fail  to  attract  the  notice,  and 
gain  you  the  approbation  of  your  fellow  citizens.    Convinced  that 


52      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

the  diffusion  of  knowledge  is  essentially  connected  with  the 
welfare  of  your  country,  these  are  the  objects  of  your  benevolent 
efforts.  The  intelligent  and  the  good  appreciate  their  merit. 
Their  gratitude  and  best  wishes  attend  you.  Go  on,  gentlemen, 
in  your  patriotick  labours ;  and  may  they  continue  to  be  crowned 
by  an  indulgent  Providence  with  abundant  success. 

To  the  Tutors 

At  my  removal  from  this  seminary  the  tutors  have  a  just  claim 
to  my  acknowledgments;  and  I  shall  be  inexcusable  were  I  to 
pass  them  by  in  silence.  You  do  not,  gentlemen,  expect  from  me 
the  strains  of  panegyrick.  Give  me  leave  simply  to  observe,  that 
your  faithful  performance  of  the  duties  of  your  station  does 
you  honour;  and  that  by  your  manner  of  doing  it  you  justly 
possess  the  attachment  as  well  as  the  respect  of  the  students.  I 
know  you  have  the  promotion  of  useful  learning  much  at  heart ; 
and  it  cannot  but  afford  you  much  satisfaction  to  see  the  work  of 
your  hands  prosper.  With  all  the  respect  of  the  pupil  and  the 
affection  of  the  friend,  I  bid  you  farewell. 

Conclusion 

But  lest  I  should  put  the  patience  of  my  audience  to  too  great 
a  trial,  I  hasten  to  a  conclusion.  Farewell  then  to  this  beloved 
retreat,  the  seat  of  science,  and  of  peace;  where,  amidst  the 
pleasures  of  literary  exercises,  and  the  intercourse  of  friendship, 
I  have  spent  so  many  days.  Farewell  to  this  respectable  collec- 
tion of  ladies  and  gentlemen,  who  have  so  repeatedly  honoured 
us  with  their  presence,  and  animated  us  by  the  smiles  of  their 
approbation.  And  lastly,  with  the  sincerest  interest  for  your  suc- 
cess in  your  studies,  and  your  general  prosperity  through  life, 
I  bid  you,  my  dear  fellow  students,  most  cordially  farewell] 

1800.  Jan.  4.   Col.  Charles  Allen. 

The  President  gave  notice  to  the  Board  of  his  intention  to 
resign  his  office  after  the  end  of  the  next  summer  session. 

1800.    Mar.  28.   Col.  Thomas  Scott. 

Conrad  Speece,  junr.,  one  of  the  teachers  in  College,  to  re- 
ceive a  salary  of  one  hundred  pounds  pr.  annum,  which  is  twenty 
pounds  pr.  annum  more  than  was  formerly  directed  to  be  paid 
him. 

The  room  in  the  west  end  of  the  common  hall  to  be  fitted  up  as 
a  common  school  room. 

Appears  to  the  Board  from  the  representation  of  the  Presi- 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  53 

dent  that  it  is  necessary  that  the  Students  be  formed  into  a  cer- 
tain fixed  number  of  classes,  and  that  it  will  be  proper  to  depart 
from  the  original  plan  laid  down  in  the  Laws  and  Regulations 
of  the  College.1 

A  student  to  be  considered  expelled  if  he  does  not  return  to 
College  and  take  his  trial  for  offences :  viz,  that  he  has  absented 
himself  from  the  College  in  hours  of  study  without  permission 
several  times ;  he  has  gone  several  times  to  an  ordinary  or  tavern 
after  night,  he  has  engaged  there  in  revelling  and  drinking;  he 
has  absented  himself  several  times  from  College  after  nine  o'clock 
at  night;  he  has  absented  himself  altogether  when  expressly 
forbidden  so  to  do. 

1800.   Apr.  10.   Thomas  Scott. 

The  Spring  vacation  to  be  extended  to  the  15th  instead  of  the 
first  of  June  next,  in  order  that  there  may  be  time  to  repair  the 
College. 

1800.  Apr.  23.   Thomas  Scott.  \ 
Degrees  conferred  [2]2 

1801.  Feb.  17.  Francis  Watkins. 

Ordered,  that  no  person  in  future  be  permitted  to  play  the 
game  called  fives  against  the  College  building.3 

Every  student  who  returns  to  College  by  nine  o'clock  in  the 
morning  on  the  first  day  of  a  session  shall  be  entitled  to  occupy 
the  room  he  occupied  the  session  before. 

^rhis  is  not  clear.  The  Laws  and  Regulations  of  1784  provide  for  a 
certain  fixed  number  of  classes.  It  is  quite  possible  that  in  the  dis- 
organization setting  in  after  John  Blair  Smith's  term  of  office,  class 
alignments  may  have  become  obscure.  Individualism  in  education  was 
something  of  an  overdone  fad  in  this  country  from  time  to  time  during 
the  first  third  of  the  nineteenth  century.  About  1830  Dr.  Louis  Mar- 
shall gave  Washington  College  a  severe  dose  of  the  schools  and  no- 
class  system. 

2Joseph  Carrington  Cabell  was  for  a  year  a  member  of  this  class.  He 
was  removed  to  William  and  Mary  where  he  graduated.  Mr.  Cabell,  as 
appears  in  his  correspondence  with  Jefferson,  was  a  friend  to  Hampden 
Sidney  College.  He  was  a  student  there  when  the  College  was  at 
its  feeblest. 

"Fives — A  kind  of  play  with  a  ball  against  the  side  of  a  building, 
resembling  tennis;  so  named  because  three  fives  or  fifteen  are  counted 
to  the  game.' 

Collection  of  College  Words  and  Customs.  By  B.  H.  Hall.  Cambridge 
1856. 

Apparently,  Fives  (like  plays  at  Commencement  and  the  celebration 
of  Feb.  22)   was  a  peculiarly  southern  institution  after  1800. 


54       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1801.  Apr.  23.   Francis  Watkins. 

Degrees  conferred  [2]1 

The  charge  of  the  College  to  be  committed  for  the  next  session 
to  Mr.  Speece  and  Mr.  Rice,  the  present  Tutors  in  College; 
some  suitable  person  to  be  procured  as  an  assistant  teacher. 


1802.   Jan.  18.   Thomas  Scott. 

Samuel  W.  Venable,  Richard  N.  Venable,  and  James  Morton 
are  appointed  a  committee  to  procure  to  be  imported  for  the  use 
of  the  College  such  a  Philosophical  and  Mathematical  apparatus 
as  they  may  judge  most  suitable  at  present  for  the  College,  and 
that  they  be  allowed  to  appropriate  of  the  funds  of  the  College 
in  the  hands  of  James  Morton  &  Co,  Venable  &  Venable,  and 
Richard  N.  Venable  as  much  as  shall  amount  to  one  hundred 
or  one  hundred  and  ten  pounds  sterling. 

The  Board  appoint  Mr.  Alexander  president  of  the  College  in 
conformity  to  the  agreement  made  with  him  by  committee.2 
[Terms:  £50  current  money  and  proportion  of  tuition  money, 
out  of  which  Tutor  to  be  paid.  When  tuition  shall  amount  to 
two  hundred  pounds  and  less  than  three  hundred,  such  assistance 
to  be  procured  as  may  appear  to  be  necessary.  When  tuition 
amounts  to  £300  one  other  good  and  suitable  Tutor  to  be 
engaged.  Board  to  direct  appropriation  of  last  hundred  pounds 
when  tuition  shall  amount  to  four  hundred  pounds.] 

aThe  Rev.  William  H.  Barr,  D.  D.  (d.  1843)  of  South  Carolina  was 
one  of  the  two  graduates. 

2President  Alexander  resigned  at  the  end  of  the  winter  session  of 
1801 ;  and  entered  upon  his  duties  a  second  time  as  president  at  the  end 
of  the  winter  session  of  1802.  That  is,  he  was  out  of  office  from  May 
1801  to  May  1802.  During  the  year  he  made  a  journey  to  New  Eng- 
land and  was  married.  The  account  of  the  New  England  journey,  (given 
in  his  Life,  Ch.  X)  is  extremely  interesting.  He  was  at  Harvard  for 
the  Commencement — "Dr.  Morse  took  charge  of  me  for  the  most  part. 
He  conducted  me  to  the  Commencement,  and  introduced  me  as  the 
President  of  a  College  in  Virginia.  At  my  first  arrival  there  was  a 
laughable  mistake  about  this  presidency.  I  had  never  intended  to  men- 
tion my  connection  with  a  college,  and  I  knew  that  Hampden  Sidney 
was  perfectly  unknown.  But  Coffin  had  told  Dr.  Burnet  that  I  had 
been  President  of  Hampden  Sidney,  and  Burnet  in  introducing  me  to 
Dr.  Eckley,  had  written  it  Camden  Sidney.  This  letter  Dr.  E.  showed 
to  Dr.  Morse,  and  the  American  geographer  was  nonplussed;  he  had 
never  heard  of  the  College.  There  was  no  way  to  clear  up  the  diffi- 
culty but  by  applying  to  me.  But  by  this,  the  matter  was  little  mended, 
for  Dr.  Morse  in  his  Geography  had  represented  Hampden  Sidney  as 
nearly  extinct;  my  honour  as  a  President  was  not  therefore  very  flat- 
tering. All  titles  of  this  sort,  however,  go  for  much  in  New  England, 
and  I  was  often  placed  before  my  seniors  and  betters." 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  55 

1803.   Jan.  1.   At  Major  James  Morton's  Store.    Col.  Thomas 
Scott. 

Samuel  W.  Venable  reported,  that  part  of  the  Philosophical 
and  Mathematical  apparatus,  which  he  was  desired  to  import 
for  the  College  was  come  to  hand,  amounting  to  £72  sterling,  and 
that  he  had  sent  it  to  the  College  to  be  deposited  in  the  room 
where  the  Library  is  kept,  and  that  the  balance  expected  from 
London  will  probably  arrive  shortly. 

£14.  19.  3  allowed  Major  Morton,  hire  of  negro  David,  em- 
ployed in  the  service  of  the  College. 

It  appearing  to  the  Board  that  a  house  is  necessary  at  College 
for  the  purpose  of  depositing  the  Library  and  apparatus,  it  is 
ordered  that  James  Morton,  Samuel  W.  Venable,  and  Richard 
N.  Venable  be  a  Committee  to  draw  the  plan  and  to  engage 
workmen  to  build  the  house.  The  same  committee  are  also 
authorized  to  agree  with  the  Library  Company1  on  such  terms 
as  they  may  think  just  and  reasonable,  to  allow  them  the  use 
of  a  suitable  room  in  the  said  house  for  the  purpose  of  keeping 
their  Library. 

1803.    Apr.  5.    Revd.  Mr.  Alexander. 

It  appearing  to  the  Board  that  four  of  the  Trustees  have 
deceased  since  the  last  election,  viz.  Colo.  William  Cabell  of 
Amherst,  Patrick  Henry,  Esqr.,  Genl.  Everard  Meade,  and  Colo. 
John  Nash,  and  that  Doctor  Robert  L.  Smith  has  removed  from 
the  State;  it  was  determined  to  proceed  to  the  choice  of  five 
members  to  supply  these  vacancies,2  and  the  following  persons 
were  chosen  accordingly,  viz :  Doer.  Goodridge  Wilson,  Paul 
Carrington,  Junr.,  Esqr.,  the  Revd.  Drury  Lacy,  Wm.  M.  Wat- 
kins,  and  Isaac  Read. 

1The  Library  Company  of  Prince  Edward  was  incorporated  in  1804. 
There  were  numerous  such  Library  Companies  in  Virginia  about  this 
time.     See,   Hening's  Statutes. 

2The  memory  of  Col.  William  Cabell  has  been  well  preserved  in  Alex- 
ander Brown's  Cabell's  and  Their  Kin,  (Houghton,  Mifflin  and  Co. 
1895),  to  be  praised  among  genealogies  for  containing  a  vast  amount  of 
interesting  historical  material. — Everard  Meade,  aide  to  General  Lincoln 
and  afterwards  raised  to  the  rank  of  General,  was  the  uncle  of  Bishop 
Meade,  author  of  Old  Churches,  Ministers  and  Families  of  Virginia. 
Everard  Meade,  with  two  brothers,  was  at  Harrow  School  under  Dr. 
Thackeray,  grandfather  of  the  novelist;  fellow  pupils  were  Sir  William 
Jones,  the  Orientalist,  and  Sir  Joseph  Banks,  President  of  the  Royal 
Society. — Having  died  in  Charlotte  county,  Patrick  Henry  has  been  more 
or  less  appropriated  by  that  county.  He  lived  a  good  deal  longer  in 
Prince  Edward  County,  at  a  plantation  on  Appomattox  river,  than  in 
Charlotte  county. — Col.  Nash  was  a  brother  of  Gen.  Francis  Nash,  who 
fell  at  Germantown,  and  of  Abner  Nash,  first  Governor  of  North  Caro- 
lina under  the  Constitution. 


56  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1803.   July  20.   The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy. 

Degrees  conferred   [2] 

Ordered,  that  Abraham  B.  Venable,  Richard  N.  Venable,  Paul 
Carrington,  junr.,  Genl.  John  B.  Scott,  Major  Clement  Carring- 
ton,  be  a  Committee  to  petition  the  next  General  Assembly  for 
the  lands  which  shall  hereafter  be  escheated,  in  this  and  some 
of  the  neighboring  counties ;  it  is  likewise  ordered  that  the  same 
committee  take  any  measures  that  they  may  deem  proper  to 
procure  part  or  the  whole  of  the  funds  which  the  Cincinnati 
Society  are  about  to  give  to  some  Seminary  of  learning. 

1803.   Nov.  21.   The  Revd.  Matthew  Lyle. 

The  College  buildings  to  be  insured  in  the  office  of  the  Mutual 
Assurance  Society.1 

The  Revd.  Archibald  Alexander  added  to  the  Committee  to 
make  application  to  the  Cincinnati  Society.  It  is  also  the  wish 
of  the  Board  that  he  should  attend  in  Richmond  at  the  meet- 
ing of  the  Society,  if  his  other  occupations  will  permit  him  to 
do  so. 

Ordered,  that  the  Committee  appointed  to  transact  the  business 
with  the  Cincinnati  Society  be  authorized  to  change  the  name 
of  the  College  to  any  name  that  the  Society  shall  wish,  and  to 
agree  to  any  other  reasonable  condition  that  the  Society  might 
wish  to  make  in  case  they  should  wish  to  give  their  funds  to 
this  College. 

Ordered  that  a  respectful  address  from  this  Board  to  the 
Cincinnati  Society  be  presented  by  such  of  the  above  mentioned 
committee  as  may  attend  the  meeting  in  Richmond,  and  that 
the  Revd.  Archibald  Alexander  and  Maj.  Clement  Carrington 
draw  an  address  for  this  purpose,  agreeing  in  substance  with  one 
read  by  Mr.  Alexander  today. 

Ordered,  that  a  copy  of  the  address  to  be  made  to  the  Cincinnati 
Society  from  this  Board  be  deposited  with  the  papers  of  College.2 

x"At  the  head  of  this  establishment  was  Wm.  F.  Ast,  the  projector  of 
the  system  of  Mutual  Assurance  in  this  country.  Mr.  Ast  was  a 
Prussian."     Richmond  in  By-gone  Days,  p.  253. 

2An  analysis  of  the  vote  makes  it  appear  that  this  was  a  political 
matter:    Federalist  and  Republican. 

'At  a  meeting  of  the  Society  of  Cincinnati  of  Virginia,  at  the  Capitol, 
in  the  City  of  Richmond,  on  Monday,  the  13th  of  December,  1802.  Re- 
solved, That  the  next  General  Meeting  shall  be  on  the  second  Monday  in 
December  next,  at  the  Capitol.  *  *  *  *  Members  of  the  Cincinnati 
who  voted  in  favor  of  the  Washington  Academy  [Dec.  1803] 

1.  Gen.  James  Wood,  Prest.  pro   tern Frederick 

2.  Col.    Wm.    Heth Henrico 

3.  Col.    Ed.    Carrington Richmond 

4.  Mayo    Carrington Cumberland 


i 

i 

\ 

&Jk 

j 

■     jm    "  \^jL*»k  EM                                         ';  or'* 

A.BRAHAM     B.    VENABLE. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  57 

1804.   Jan.  4.   The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy. 

Doctr.  Joseph  Mettauer  attended  the  Board  and  complained 
that  his  son  Peter  had  been  improperly  and  passionately  cor- 
rected by  Mr.  Leak,  the  Teacher  of  the  Grammar  School.  After 
hearing  the  complaint,  and  after  mature  deliberation,  it  is  deter- 
mined that  it  will  be  best,  and  most  for  the  peace  of  College  not 
to  enter  into  a  particular  investigation  of  this  matter.  But  to 
prevent  all  complaint  of  this  kind,  and  all  cause  of  complaint  in 
future,  it  is  ordered  that  no  boy  above  fourteen  years  old  shall 
receive  corporal  punishment  from  the  teacher  of  the  Grammar 
School  except  in  the  presence  of  the  President  and  Teachers 
of  College  [Rescinded,  Apr.  25,  1805.] 

1804.    Mar.  22.    Colo.  Charles  Allen. 

The  Board  having  received  information  that  a  flagrant  tres- 
pass had  lately  been  committed  on  the  property  of  two  persons 

5.  John    Woods Bedford 

6.  Churchill    Jones Orange 

7.  Robert    Gamble Richmond 

8.  John    White Richmond 

9.  John    Pryor Richmond 

10.  Gen.  James  Williams Orange 

1 1.  Gen.    Blackwell Fauquier 

12.  Col.   John   Jamison Culpeper 

13.  Collin   Cook Prince   George 

14.  John    Stith Brunswick 

15.  Gen.   Robert   Porterfield Augusta 

16.  Dr.    Middleton Surry 

17.  Henry    Bowyer Botetourt 

18.  One  other  whose  name  I  cannot  recollect. 

Votes  for  Hampden-Sidney 

1.  William    Bentley Powhatan 

2.  William    Moseley Richmond 

3.  Marks    Vandewall Richmond 

4.  Geo.    Carrington Halifax 

5.  Clem't    Carrington Charlotte 

6.  John     Scott Halifax 

7.  Charles    Scott Kentucky 

8.  John    Harris Powhatan 

9.  Jordan    Harris Powhatan 

10.  Willis    Wilson Cumberland 

11.  John   Crute Prince   Edward 

12.  Matt     Clay Pittsylvania 

13.  Wm.    B.    Wallace Stafford 

14.  Larkin  Smith King  and  Queen 

15.  Samuel    Coleman Richmond 

l6-  Tribue Chesterfield' 

See,   Washington  and  Lee  Historical  Papers,  No.  4,  pp.  75-78. 


58       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

in  the  neighborhood,  viz:  Benjamin  Scott  and  Henry  Jones,  by- 
destroying  for  each  of  them  a  number  of  fruit  trees,  and  having 
also  been  informed  that  the  offence  was  charged  on  a  small 
number  of  students,  proceeded  to  enter  into  an  enquiry  to  ascer- 
tain whether  this  was  true,  and  if  possible  to  fix  the  charge  on  the 
particular  guilty  persons. 

Mr.  John  H.  Rice  gave  notice  to  the  Board  that  he  would 
probably  leave  College  at  the  end  of  the  next  session. 

1804.  Aug.  24.   Francis  Watkins. 

The  rate  of  boarding  for  the  ensuing  year  to  be  twenty  four 
pounds  instead  of  twenty  pounds,  to  be  paid  as  usual ;  provided 
Mr.  Moses  Tredway,  the  present  Steward,  continues  at  College 
for  the  ensuing  year. 

1805.  Feb.  18.   Charles  Allen. 

Major  James  Morton  to  employ  some  person  to  put  the  house 
commonly  called  Overstreet's  house  in  such  repair  as  conveniently 
to  accommodate  students. 

Samuel  W.  Venable  permitted  to  finish  the  room  over  the 
Library  room  in  the  house  lately  built  at  College,  at  his  own 
expense,  as  well  as  the  room  adjoining  the  same,  and  to  occupy 
them  by  his  sons  and  such  other  students  as  he  shall  choose, 
till  the  expence  is  refunded  to  him  at  the  customary  rate  of 
room  rent. 

Richard  N.  Venable  and  Doctor  Goodridge  Wilson  appointed 
to  have  the  College  roof  new  shingled,  and  put  in  good  repair. 

Richard  N.  Venable  appointed  to  collect  the  monies  lately  sub- 
scribed to  establish  a  permanent  fund  for  the  use  of  the  Col- 
lege, and  to  invest  the  same  in  the  stock  of  the  Bank  of  Virginia, 
or  such  other  stock  as  he  may  judge  best,  or  in  shares  in  any  of 
the  canal  or  turnpike  companies1  if  he  should  think  them  better 
property  than  Bank  Stock. 

1805.   Apr.  25.   The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy. 

On  a  representation  to  the  board  that  a  fund  had  been  estab- 
lished in  the  neighborhood  for  the  purpose  of  supporting  the 

'Mr.  Venable  was  early  interested  in  internal  improvements,  and  con- 
tinued so  to  the  end  of  his  life.  About  1820  he  published  a  pamphlet 
showing  the  feasibility  of  the  canalization  of  the  Appomattox  and  Roa- 
noke rivers,  making  the  two  one  system  for  navigation.  When  railroads 
came  in  he  was  active  in  attempting  to  get  a  North  and  South  railroad 
through  Prince  Edward  County  [cf.  Farmers'  Register,  IV  (1836)  309, 
369.]  The  earliest  record  of  Mr.  Venable's  navigation  schemes  is  to  be 
found  in  the  Journal  of  Benjamin  Henry  Latrobe  (New  York,  1905) 
p.  I4ff.  Latrobe's  first  important  work  in  this  country  was  a  survey  of 
the  Appomattox  river,   from   Prince  Edward  down. 


Richard  N.  Venable. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  59 

Gospel  at  the  College  Hall;1  that  this  fund  is  in  the  hands  of 
Trustees  who  agreeably  to  the  wish  of  the  donors  desire  to  con- 
vey the  same  to  the  trustees  of  the  College  in  trust  to  be  em- 
ployed for  the  purpose  mentioned  above.  It  is  therefore  ordered 
that  Richard  N.  Vienable  be  appointed  on  behalf  of  this  board 
to  treat  with  the  trustees  of  this  fund,  and  if  he  shall  judge  best 
to  receive  the  said  fund  in  trust  for  the  board. 

1805.    July  25.    The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy. 

No  student  permitted  to  keep  pistols,  or  by  any  means  to  be 
engaged  in  shooting  or  practising  with  pistols. 

Any  student  who  shall  be  engaged  in  a  duel,  or  in  any  wise 
concerned  in  promoting  the  same  shall  be  subject  to  the  punish- 
ment of  expulsion  for  the  first  offence. 

The  obligation  of  students  to  give  evidence  when  called  upon 
to  do  so  by  the  President  and  Teachers,  or  by  the  Trustees :  it  is 
declared  that  they  now  are,  and  always  have  been  bound  to  do  so. 

Whereas  it  appears  that  a  general  combination  has  taken  place 
amongst  the  students  to  resist  and  treat  with  disrespect  the 
authority  of  College,2  and  in  particular  that  all  except  William 
Morton  &c  have  entered  into  an  agreement  to  refuse  to  give 
evidence  to  the  Trustees  concerning  certain  disorders  which  took 
place  in  the  College  on  the  evening  of  Sunday  last,  and  as  it 
seems  highly  probable  that  many  have  entered  into  this  compact 
without  consideration  or  information,  it  is  determined  not  to 
come  to  a  final  determination  at  this  time,  but  to  order  that  all 
the  students  except  those  named  above  shall  be  suspended  from 
the  privileges  of  College  until  Monday  the  29th  instant,  when 
the  board  will  meet  again,  for  the  purpose  of- making  their  final 
order  as  to  this  matter. 

1805.    July  29-30.    The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy. 

Inquiry. 

Three  students  expelled,  refusing  to  give  evidence.  Seven  sus- 
pended, for  different  periods  of  time;  Benjamin  Cook  suspended 
until  the  officers  of  College  shall  be  satisfied  to  receive  him, 
charged  with  creating  disorders  in  the  night  of  Sunday  the  21st, 

lrrhe  record  is  not  clear  as  to  whether  this  fund  was  identical  with 
that  for  a  theological  library  and  department. 

One  of  the  Chief  donors  to  the  first  local  fund  for  a  theological  de- 
partment was  Andrew  Baker  (called  General  Baker)  who  lived  very  near 
the  College.  See  his  will,  probated  1805,  Prince  Edward  County  Will 
Books.  General  Baker  was  the  grandfather  of  the  Rev.  Andrew  B. 
Davidson,   for  more  than  forty  years  a  Trustee  of  Washington  College. 

'Under  Dr.  Alexander,  as  under  Dr.  Green,  the  increase  in  the  num- 
ber of  students  brought  in  a  few  disreputable  subjects.  See,  Foote's 
Sketches,  II,  280. 


60       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

by  ringing  the  bell,  'placing  pieces  of  timbers  against  the  doors  of 
the  teachers  to  fall  on  them  when  the  door  should  be  opened, 
and  moreover  by  throwing  a  brick  through  a  window  of  Mr. 
Crawford,  one  of  the  teachers,  by  which  the  window  was  broiken 
and  the  persons  in  the  room  put  in  danger  of  considerable 
injury.' 

As  a  great  proportion  of  the  students  who  combined  to  resist 
the  authority  of  College  have  manifested  a  sense  of  their  errors, 
and  promised  obedience  and  regular  conduct  in  future,  it  is 
determined  that  they  shall  receive  an  admonition  in  the  presence 
of  the  Board  and  be  restored  to  their  privileges  in  College.1 

1805.   Sept.  25.  The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy. 

Money  arising  from  the  use  of  the  Library  to  be  applied  to  the 
purchase  of  books. 

Ordered,  that  no  student  be  admitted  in  future  at  this  College 
from  other  seminaries  of  learning  without  producing  a  certificate 
from  the  principal  of  such  seminary,  that  he  has  been  dismissed 
from  the  same  without  censure. 

1805.  Dec.  13.   Mr.  Lacy. 

Francis  Watkins,  Abraham  B.  Venable,  and  Richard  N.  Ven- 
able,  or  any  one  of  them,  a  committee  to  represent  the  President 
and  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  voting  for  directors 
in  the  Bank  of  Virginia  at  their  next  election. 

1806.  April  27.    Francis  Watkins. 

Degree  conferred:  James  W.  Womack  the  only  candidate  at 
this  time. 

1806.   Aug.  26.   Colo.  Charles  Allen. 

Committee  appointed  to  superintend  the  repairing  of  the  Col- 
lege and  the  Hall,  reported  that  they  had  conceived  the  building 
of  a  dining  room  of  great  importance  to  the  College  in  its  present 
state ;  and  that  subscriptions  had  been  taken  to  some  considerable 
amount  for  that  purpose.  Committee  authorized,  and  they  are 
hereby  authorized,  to  proceed  in  the  repairs  necessary  to  be  done 

Georgetown,  Jan.  31,   1806. 
'Would  you  prefer  being  at  Hamp.  Sid.  College  to  staying  at  Bizarre?' 

Georgetown,  Feb.  15,  1806. 

'I  have  determined  to  settle  you  at  school  at  Winchester  unless  (of 
which  I  have  no  expectation)  I  shall  find  Hampden  Sidney  very  greatly 
altered  for  the  better/ 

Letters  of  John  Randolph  to  a  Young  Relative  [Theodore  Bland  Dud- 
ley! 

Philadelphia:  1834.  pp  10,  13. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  61 

to  the  College,  and  also  in  building  a  dining  room,  as  far  as  the 
funds  of  the  College  and  the  subscriptions  will  allow  them. 

A  student  of  the  Grammar  School  expelled,  who  being  ques- 
tioned on  the  subject  of  shooting  a  pistol  near  the  College, 
showed  the  utmost  contempt  of  the  Board,  by  leaving  their 
presence  in  an  abrupt  manner,  and  telling  them  they  might  do 
what  they  could. 

1806.   Sept.  25.   Mr.  Lacy. 

Committee  appointed  to  confer  with  the  Revd.  John  H.  Rice 
and  Mr.  James  Daniel  (on  the  part  of  a  Committee  appointed 
by  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover)  on  the  subject  of  receiving  in 
trust  for  the  said  Presbytery  funds  for  establishing  a  Theological 
Library  and  School  of  Divinity  at  the  College. 

Committee  appointed  to  make  sale  of  the  tract  of  land  lying 
in  the  upper  end  of  Prince  Edward  County  on  the  waters  of 
Appomattox. 

1806.   Nov.  7.   Mr.  Lacy. 

The  Revd.  Archibald  Alexander  laid  his  resignation  of  the 
office  of  President  of  the  College  on  the  table  for  the  considera- 
tion of  the  Board1  [accepted  Nov.  13th]  ;  whereupon  Wm.  S. 
Reid  is  appointed  to  superintend  and  take  charge  of  the  College 
for  the  present  session,  and  Andrew  Shannon,  Thomas  Lump- 
kin, and  James  Wilson  are  appointed  as  assistant  teachers.  Mr. 
Reid  to  be  paid  one  hundred  dollars  in  addition  to  salary  arising 
from  tuition  money. 

1806.  Nov.  13.    Mr.  Lacy. 

Samuel  W.  Venable  resigned  his  office  as  the  Standing  Clerk  of 
this  Board,  the  Revd.  Drury  Lacy  appointed  to  succeed  him. 

Committee  to  receive  con^munications  from  the  congregations 
of  Briery  and  Cumberland,  relative  to  the  supplying  of  the  place 
of  a  President.  The  reason  of  this  order  is  that  the  President 
has  been  generally  minister  of  those   Congregations. 

1807.  Jan.  15.    The  Revd.  Matthew  Lyle. 

Committee  appointed  to  make  sale  of  some  of  the  College 
lands,  lying  in  the  upper  end  of  Prince  Edward  county,  report 

11 ' About  this  time  the  conduct  of  the  students  became  very  irregular. 
and  I  grew  weary  of  governing  them."  Life  of  Archibald  Alexander,  Ed. 
1855.  p.  258.  Going  to  Philadelphia  in  November  1806.  Dr.  Alexander 
became  pastor  of  the  Pine  Street  Presbyterian  Church  (of  which  John 
Blair  Smith  had  been  pastor  for  a  few  years).  In  1812  he  removed 
to  Princeton  where  he  spent  the  rest  of  his  long  life.  Author  of  innum- 
erable books  he  had  produced  not  one  before  going  to  Princeton  in  his 
fortieth  year. 


62       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

that  they  have  sold  to  John  Ferguson  of  the  county  of  Bucking- 
ham the  tract  commonly  called  Grey's  Tract  containing  three 
hundred  and  eighty  one  acres,  at  thirty  four  shillings  p.  acre, 
payable  in  three  equal  and  annual  payments  with  interest.  And 
also  to  Josiah  Legrand  three  other  tracts,  containing  nine  hun- 
dred and  twelve  and  one  half  acres,  for  the  sum  of  twelve  hun- 
dred pounds,  at  four  equal  and  annual  payments,  with  interest. 

1807.    May  1.    Major  James  Morton. 

Degrees  Conferred:  Henry  N.  Watkins  and  Thomas  W. 
Lumpkin,  'who  had  been  for  some  years  a  Tutor  in  College/ 
The  Revd.  Drury  Lacy,  President  pro  tempore  for  the  purpose 
of  signing  the  degrees  of  the  above  young  gentlemen. 

1807.    May  6.   The  Revd.  Matthew  Lyle. 

The  Revd.  John  H.  Rice  elected  a  Trustee. 
The  Revd.  Moses  Hoge  unanimously  elected  President:1  £ioo 
and  such  proportion  of  the  tuition  money  as  has  usually  been 
appropriated  to  the  President. 

Committee  to  confer  with  Cumberland  Congregation  to  know 
whether  Mr.  Hoge  would  be  acceptable  to  them  as  a  minister. 

1807.   Oct.  30.   Mr.  Lyle. 

The  Revd.  Moses  Hoge  appeared  before  the  Board  and  for- 
mally accepted  the  office  of  President  of  the  College,  and  hav- 
ing taken  the  oath  required  by  law  took  his  seat  as  a  member 
of  the  Board. 

1807.   Dec.  21.   Mr.  Hoge. 

A  communication  was  laid  before  the  Board  from  the  Rev. 
Bishop  Madison,  President  of  William  and  Mary  College,  and 
another  from  the  Rev.  Geo.  A.  Baxter,  Principal  of  Washington 
Academy,  requesting  that  this  Board  would  concur  with  the  re- 
spective Boards  of  those  Seminaries,  in  a  petition  to  the  Legis- 
lature of  the  State :  'To  grant  to  them  the  power  of  summoning 
and  compelling  the  attendance  of  witnesses,  and  of  administering 
an  oath  to  any  person,  other  than  a  student,  to  answer  all  ques- 
tions respecting  students  as  to  the  violation  of  any  of  the  rules 
and  statutes  of  their  respective  Seminaries.' 

After  deliberation: 

Resolved  that  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  Board,  that  it  would  be 

1The  President-elect  was  in  his  fifty  sixth  year.  This  fact  had  its 
influence.  John  Blair  Smith  was  twenty  three  when  he  was  placed  in 
charge;  Samuel  Stanhope  Smith  and  Archibald  Alexander  were  twenty 
five.  Youth  is  a  fine  possession,  but  middle-age  for  many  purposes  is 
no  disadvantage. 


\B? 

Archibald  Alexander. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  63 

beneficial  for  seminaries  of  learning  to  have  the  right  of  calling 
on  the  civil  authority  to  administer  oaths  to  persons  other  than 
students  *  *  *  and  they  are  willing  to  join  with  the  Col- 
lege of  William  and  Mary,  and  the  Washington  Academy  in 
petitioning  the  Assembly  to  pass  an  Act,  making  it  the  duty  of  all 
civil  magistrates  to  administer  oaths  in  all  such  cases. 

1808.  June  20.   Mr.  Hoge. 

Degree  conferred :    John  B.  Hoge1 

Agreement  respecting  the  transferring  of  certain  books  and 
funds  belonging  to  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover  to  the  President 
and  Trustees  in  trust:  "*  *  *  3rdly,  when  the  funds  given 
by  the  said  Presbytery  shall  be  sufficient  to  employ  a  Teacher  of 
Theology  for  the  instruction  of  such  poor  and  pious  youth,  their 
Teacher  shall  be  such  person  as  shall  be  recommended  by  the 
Presbytery  and  approved  of  by  the  Trustees  of  the  College." 

The  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts  conferred  on  Andrew  A. 
Shannon  speciali  gratia  et  causa  honoris. 

1808.   Sept.  29.   Mr.  Lyle. 

Degrees  conferred :  James  C.  Wilson,  Bachelor  of  Arts  causa 
honoris,  'for  some  time  a  teacher  in  the  seminary,  in  considera- 
tion of  his  literary  qualifications. '  Master  of  Arts:  the  Revd. 
Conrad  Speece,  the  Revd.  John  H.  Rice,  and  Mr.  William  S. 
Reid,  V.  D.  M. 

Committee  to  revise  the  laws  respecting  the  division  of  the 
students  into  classes,  and  prescribing  their  respective  studies  dur- 
ing each  session. 

1808.  Nov.  10.   Mr.  Hoge. 

Degree  conferred:    Nathaniel  [E.]  Venable. 

1809.  Aug.  14.   The  Hon.  Paul  Carrington,  Jr. 

Ordered,  that  a  resort  of  the  students  of  this  seminary  to  pub- 
lic meetings  at  the  Court  house  on  court  days,  musters  &c  is  a 
loss  of  time,  generates  vice,  and  a  corruption  of  morals,  and 
ought  not  to  be  tolerated.  It  is  therefore  ordered,  that  after 
the  commencement  of  the  next  session,  no  student  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  go  to  the  Court  house  on  court  days,  or  on  days  of 
muster,  unless  when  compelled  to  attend  by  legal  authority. 

The  Board  took  into  consideration  a  Law  passed  on  the  23rd 
of  June,   1784,  subjecting  the  students  who  should  not  attend 

*For  a  sketch  of  the  life  of  John  Blair  Hoge,  See  Foote's  Sketches 
of  Virginia,  II,  593-594. 


64       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

public  prayers  in  the  College  to  a  fine  of  4  d.  and  agreed  that  the 
same  ought  to  be  and  is  hereby  rescinded. 

Committee  reports  that  it  is  necessary  to  do  a  number  of  re- 
pairs to  the  College  buildings;  and  it  appearing  that  it  is  an 
object  of  great  importance  to  erect  a  house  for  a  Grammar 
School  distinct  from  College,  ordered,  that  a  subscription  be 
opened  for  raising  money  for  the  aforesaid  purposes. 

1809.  Sept.  29.   Major  James  Morton. 

Misrepresentations  having  been  circulated  and  many  misappre- 
hensions entertained  by  the  public  respecting  a  regulation  lately 
adopted,  prohibiting  the  students  of  this  seminary  from  attend- 
ing at  the  Court  House  on  court  days  and  other  public  days, 
ordered  that  the  said  Law  be  published  in  one  of  the  Gazettes 
printed  in  the  city  of  Richmond. 

1810.  Mar.  19.    Mr.  Hoge. 

Degree  conferred:    John  D.  Ewing.1 

1810.   Apr.  17.   Mr.  Hoge. 

Degrees  conferred:   Jesse  H.  Turner  and  Charles  H.  Kennon. 
Resolved,  that  the  price  of  tuition  hereafter  at  this  seminary 
shall  be  thirty  dollars  per  annum,  to  be  paid  in  advance. 

1810.   Apr.  25.  Richard  N.  Venable. 

Degrees  conferred:  Samuel  D.  Hoge,2  Joseph  M.  Venable, 
and  James  W.  Hunt. 

1810.   Aug.  10-11.   Major  James  Morton. 

Inquiry  respecting  divers  disorders  that  have  taken  place 
in  College.  Offender  expelled  ('unless  he  appear  and  give  satis- 
factory evidence  to  the  Board  that  they  ought  to  reverse  the 
sentence'),  particularly  for  having  broken  open  the  teacher's 
door,  and  taken  the  bell,  and  for  having  left  the  College  without 
permission.  Twelve  offenders  subpended,  as  proved  guilty  of 
violating  the  laws  of  College  in  various  instances;  one,  for  re- 

xMr.  Ewing  was  at  this  time  a  Tutor  in  the  College.  He  became  a 
Presbyterian  minister  and  head  of  a  Classical  School.  He  was  for 
twenty  five  years  a  Trustee  of  Washington  College,  Virginia,  dying  in 
1877,  at  the  age  of  eighty  nine. 

2Samuel  D.  Hoge,  (a  son  of  Dr.  Moses  Hoge  and  father  of  the  late 
Moses  D.  Hoge,  D.  D.,  of  Richmond,)  died  in  1826.  Professor  of  Mathe- 
matics and  Natural  Philosophy  in  the  University  of  Ohio. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  65 

moving  the  steps  of  the  Hall.     Those  Suspended  not  to  come 
'within  less  than  two  miles  of  the  College.'1 

1810.   Sept.  26.   Major  James  Morton. 

Committee  to  petition  for  escheated  lands  in  the  County  of 
Prince  Edward. 

Committee  to  hire  or  purchase  a  servant  for  the  use  of  the 
College,  as  they  may  judge  most  expedient. 

1810.   Nov.  10.   Major  James  Morton. 

Degree  conferred:     Samuel  McNutt. 

1812.   Mar.  10.   Doctor  Hoge.2 

Money  to  be  raised  if  possible  by  subscription  for  repairs  of 
the  College. 

The  Board  having  reconsidered  the  Law  relative  to  the  stu- 

*May  18,  1810.  Hampden  Sidney  College,  Prince  Edward  Co.,  Va. — 
L  have  this  day  arrived  at  this  place,  invited  by  Dr.  Moses  Hoge  to 
assist  him  in  teaching.  My  chief  inducement  in  coming  is  the  theological 
school,  and  the  assistance  in  theology  expected  from  Dr.  Hoge. 

June  11,  1810. — Have  begun  the  Hebrew  and  French  languages,  with 
a  view  to  acquiring  such  knowledge  of  them  as  may  enable  me  to  read 
quotations  and  examine  criticisms.  Made  some  agreeable  acquaintances 
with  young  men,  and  a  number  of  very  pleasant  familiars  in  the  vicinity. 

Oct.  10,  1810 — The  first  part  of  last  session  at  H.  S.  C.  was  extremely 
turbulent.  Many  of  the  students  were  disposed  to  interrupt  the  peace 
of  college.     A  number  were  dismissed. 

July  7,  181 1 — Last  winter  session  very  trying.     Much  disorder. 

At  the  close  of  two  years  I  resigned  my  place  in  College.  I  found 
many  excellent  families  in  the  vicinity,  a  good  state  of  morals,  much 
intelligence,  considerable  wealth,  and  a  much  larger  colored  population 
than  I  had  been  accustomed  to  above  the  mountains.  The  effect  of  the 
college  in  creating  an  intelligent  population  was  very  manifest.  This 
was  the  case  at  Lexington,  but  hardly  so  manifest  at  that  time  as  it  was 
at  Hampden-Sidney.  Both  institutions  had  times  of  prosperity  and 
adversity.  Neither  had  a  full  complement  of  professors  while  I  was  con- 
nected  with  them. 

Dr.  M.  Hoge  was  President.  He  taught  one  or  two  classes  beside  the 
instruction  given  to  the  students  of  theology.  The  other  departments 
were  not  filled  with  regularly  appointed  professors,  but  with  young 
men  who  were  graduates — usually  two,  assisted  by  one  or  more  in  the 
grammar  School.  The  funds  of  the  College  did  not  admit  of  much  com- 
pensation. This  arrangement  may  not  have  been  the  best,  but  I  doubt 
whether  a  regularly  appointed  faculty  would  have  turned  out  much 
better  scholars  than  were  thus  made. 

A  Memoir  of  J.  D.  Paxton,  D.  D.,  of  Princeton,  Ind.,  Philadelphia 
1870,  p.  37  ff.  Dr.  Paxton  was  a  native  of  Rockbridge  Co.,  Va.,  a  gradu- 
ate of  Washington  Academy,  1810.  For  a  few  years  he  was  a  mis- 
sionary in   Syria. 

'President  Hoge  had  received  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  the  College 
of  New  Jersey  in  1810. 


66       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

dents  going  to  the  Court  house  on  court  days ;  ordered,  that  the 
President  may  give  leave  to  the  students  on  particular  occasions, 
to  go  there  on  such  days,  provided  that  such  privilege  shall  not 
be  granted  more  than  two  days  in  one  session. 

Degree  conferred :    William  S.  Lacy. 

Ordered  that  every  student  who  shall  hereafter  apply  for  a 
diploma,  shall  before  it  be  granted,  deliver  an  oration  of  his  own 
composition  publicly,  and  submit  a  manuscript  copy  of  it  to  a 
Board  of  Trustees. 

1812.   May  29.   Doctor  Hoge. 

Report  of  Committee  to  revise  the  laws  and  regulations  of 
College : 

i.  All  the  students  at  College  shall  be  arranged  into  five  divi- 
sions, to  be  denominated  the  Grammar  School,  the  Freshman, 
Sophomore,  Junior,  and  Senior  classes. 

2.  Every  student  in  the  Grammar  School  shall  read  the  whole 
of  Corderius's  Colloquies ;  3  dialogues  in  Erasmus ;  Selectae  e 
veteris,  part  1st;  the  whole  of  selectae  e  profanis;  Mair's  Intro- 
duction; Caesar's  Commentaries,  6  books  of  the  Gallic,  and  2  of 
the  civil  war;  such  parts  of  the  Roman  Antiquities  as  shall  be 
prescribed  by  the  President;  the  whole  of  Sallust;  Virgil  to  the 
end  of  the  6th  Aeneid;  Horace  (the  indelicate  parts  excepted)  ; 
commit  the  Greek  Grammar;  and  read  in  Greek  Testament  St. 
John's  Gospel,  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  and  33  dialogues  of  Lucian. 

He  shall  then  enter  the  Freshman  Class. 

3.  The  studies  of  the  Freshman  Class  shall  be  during  the  win- 
ter session,  the  9  following  orations  of  Cicero,  viz :  against  Q. 
Caecilius,  for  the  Manilian  Law,  4  against  Cataline,  for  Archias 
the  Poet,  for  Milo,  and  for  Marcellus ;  4  books  of  Xenophon ; 
and  common  Arithmetic, — and  during  the  summer  session,  the 
5th  and  6th  books  of  Xenophon;  the  remainder  of  Arithmetick; 
and  4  books  of  Homer.  They  shall  then  join  the  Sophomore 
Class. 

4.  The  studies  of  the  Sophomore  Class  in  the  winter  session 
shall  be  Geography;  Algebra;  and  Cicero  de  officiis,  and  in  the 
Summer  session,  6  books  of  Euclid's  Elements,  and  Trigonom- 
etry.    They  shall  then  join  the  Junior  Class. 

5.  The  Studies  of  the  Junior  Class  in  the  winter  session  shall 
be  Conic  sections;  Surveying;  Navigation;  and  Chemistry; — and 
in  the  summer  session  Natural  Philosophy;  Astronomy;  and 
English  Grammar.    They  shall  then  join  the  Senior  Class. 

6.  The  studies  of  the  Senior  Class  in  the  winter  session  shall 
be  Logic;  a  review  of  Geography;  Moral  Philosophy;  and 
Criticism — and   in   the   summer   the   Philosophy   of   the   human 


Paul   Carrington,   Jr. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  67 

mind ;  the  Law  of  nature  and  nations ;  and  the  Elements  of  Gen- 
eral History. 

7.  The  President  and  Teachers  shall  introduce  the  course  of 
studies  above  prescribed  into  this  seminary  at  the  commence- 
ment of  this  winter's  session. 

8.  Should  any  person  from  another  school,  who  has  not  pur- 
sued this  course  precisely,  apply  for  admission  into  any  of  the 
Classes  in  College,  and  shall  be  able  to  stand  an  examination 
which  shall  be  satisfactory  to  the  President  and  Teachers,  he  shall 
be  admitted;  and  such  student  having  afterwards  finished  the 
course  above  prescribed,  and  conformed  to  the  laws  of  the  institu- 
tion in  other  respects,  shall  be  entitled  to  a  Degree  as  if  the  whole 
of  his  literary  acquirements  had  been  obtained  at  this  place. 

9.  There  shall  be  a  public  examination  of  the  students  at  the 
end  of  each  session,  before  the  President,  Teachers  and  as  many 
of  the  Trustees  as  shall  attend.  And  if  any  student  shall  be 
judged  materially  deficient  at  the  Spring  examination,  he  shall 
nevertheless  proceed  in  the  studies  of  his  Class  until  the  close  of 
the  summer  session ;  and  if  it  then  appears  after  an  examination 
on  the  studies  of  the  whole  year  that  he  ought  to  be  admitted 
into  the  next  class,  he  shall  be  admitted  accordingly;  otherwise 
he  shall  be  turned  back  for  one  year.  And  no  student  shall  ad- 
vance into  a  higher  class  until  the  President,  Teachers  &c  are 
satisfied  that  he  is  prepared  for  such  advancement. 

Degrees  conferred:  James  Paxton,  Paul  Venable,  and  Henry 
Carrington.1 

William  Berkeley  elected  Trustee  in  the  room  of  A.  B.  Vena- 
ble, deceased.2 

Committee  (Richard  N.  V/enable,  James  Bruce,  William  M. 
Watkins,  and  Henry  E.  Watkins)  to  petition  General  Assembly 
for  lands  escheated  in  the  county  of  Prince  Edward,  and  for 
other  funds  in  the  said  county  now  appropriated  by  law  to  the 
literary  fund. 

1812.    Sept.  24.    Major  James  Morton. 

Degrees  conferred:  John  Kirkpatrick,3  Isaac  Burns,  Walter 
L.  Pharr. 

1Henry  Carrington's  diploma  has  been  preserved,  a  parchment  about 
8x10.  He  was  also  a  graduate  of  Princeton,  and  lived  to  old  age  on 
his  estate  in   Charlotte  Co.,  "Ingleside." 

2Mr.  Venable,  at  the  time  President  of  the  Bank  of  Virginia,  lost 
his  life  at  the  burning  of  the  Richmond  Theatre,  Dec  26,  181 1. 

3John  Kirkpatrick,  while  studying  theology  under  Dr.  Hoge,  was 
drafted  in  1814  among  the  recruits  from  Prince  Edward.  He  had 
from  boyhood  had  a  fondness  for  military  tactics,  and  did  not  secure 
a  substitute.  He  saw  service  for  several  months  around  Norfolk  as 
Secretary  to  Gen.   M.   Porter.     After  the  war  he  spent  a  few  years  in 


68  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1813.  Jan.  19-20-21.  Colo.  Samuel  W.  Venable. 

Investigation  of  certain  disorders  which  had  for  some  time 
past  been  carrying  on:  examination  of  lall  the  students  indi- 
vidually. Offences — throwing  logs  of  wood  from  the  upper 
stories  to  the  great  injury  of  the  house,  and  evidently  endanger- 
ing the  life  of  individuals ;  taking  the  bell  out  of  the  teacher's 
room,  secreting  it,  and  ringing  it  at  an  unseasonable  hour  of  the 
night.  Two  expelled,  unless  they  make  concessions  and  acknowl- 
edgements and  such  promises  of  future  obedience  as  shall  be 
satisfactory.  Nine  expelled,  who  confessed  that  they  knew  of 
students  who  had  been  guilty  of  one  or  the  other  of  those  irregu- 
lar proceedings,  but  refused  to  give  testimony.  Three  sus- 
pended. 

Agreeably  to  a  request  fromi  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover, 
$168.96  to  be  paid  to  the  Rev.  Doctor  Hoge,  on  account  of  ex- 
pences  incurred  for  the  Theological  students. 

1813.   Mar.  19.  Francis  Watkins,  Sr. 

Committee  to  revise  the  Laws. 

Ordered  that  each  student  upon  his  entering  College  shall  sign 
the  following  acknowledgment,  in  the  presence  of  the  President 
and  officers  of  College,  and  of  his  fellow  students,  "I  have  read, 
or  heard  read,  the  Laws  of  College;  I  understand  them,  and 
acknowledge  my  obligation  to  obey  them." 

During  the  hours  of  study  every  student  to  keep  his  room, 
unless  called  from  it  to  recite,  or  by  some  urgent  necessity  of 
which  he  shall  always  be  ready  to  give  an  account  to  any  officer 
of  College  who  may  observe  his  absence. 

Students  permitted  to  attend  Court  one  day  in  each  term  after 
the  forenoon  recitation.1 

Students  required  to  attend  until  twelve  o'clock  on  each  Sat- 
urday to  such  exercises  as  shall  be  prescribed  by  the  President. 

Doer.  Hoge  signified  to  the  Board  his  determination  to  re- 
sign his  office. 

Mr.  Moses  Tredway  gave  notice  of  his  intention  to  resign 
his  office  as  Steward. 

Chesterfield  county,  as  pastor  and  teacher,  and  there  conducted  with 
great  skill  and  success  a  school  of  deaf  mutes.  One  of  the  celebrated 
family  of  Braidwoods  had  been  in  the  neighborhood,  but  had  not  had 
much  success  in  teaching  the  dumb  to  speak.  Mr.  Kirkpatrick  ob- 
served his  methods,  and  formed  his  own.  After  1819,  until  his  death 
in  1842,  he  was  pastor  of  the  old  Cumberland  Church. 

xThe  records  do  not  clearly  substantiate  the  tradition  that  Dr.  Hoge 
encouraged  the  students  of  the  College  to  attend  Court  so  as  to  learn 
the  mechanism  of  local  government. 


John    Holt    Rice. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  69 

1813.  May  13.  Major  James  Morton. 

The  Board  resumed  the  consideration  of  the  sentence  of  ex- 
pulsion passed  against  several  students  at  this  place  in  Jan- 
uary last,  and  after  a  full  and  deliberate  discussion,  the  question 
was  put,  "Shall  there  be  any  mitigation  of  the  sentence?/'  which 
passed  in  the  negative. 

On  motion,  resolved  that  the  Rev.  Charles  H.  Kennon  be  and 
is  hereby  appointed.  Vice  President  in  the  College.1 

1813.    Aug.  16.    Doctor  Hoge. 

Committee  to  present  to  the  Legislature  of  Virginia  at  its  next 
meeting  a  petition  to  repeal  the  law  subjecting  students  to  bear 
arms.  Concurrence  of  other  literary  institutions  in  the  State  to 
be  solicited. 

1813.  Sept.  30.  Colo.  Samuel  W.  Venable. 

Degrees  conferred:  Abner  W.  Kirkpatrick,  Edward  Baptist, 
Samuel  D.  Morton,  Thomas  P.  Hunt.2 

1814.  July  18.   Col.  Charles  Allen. 

Instead  of  four  quarterly  meetings  of  the  Board,  to  be  here- 
after two  meetings  annually,  at  the  Spring  and  Fall  examina- 
tions of  the  students. 

The  most  effectual  measures  to  be  adopted  to  obtain  a  perma- 
nent Teacher  or  Teachers  of  the  Junior  and  other  classes  in 
College,  in  order  to  exempt  the  President  after  the  termination 
of  the  present  session  from  teaching  any  other  than  the  Senior 
Class.3 

1815.  May  8.   Dr.  Hoge. 

Committee  to  manage  the  property  of  College  known  by  the 
name  of  French's  Store. 

Messrs.  Henry  E.  Watkins,  Thomas  A.  Morton,  Wm.  L.  Vena- 

*Mr.  Kennon  died  shortly  afterwards,  in  1816.  There  is  a  brief 
account  of  his  life  given  in  Dr.  Rice's  Christian  Monitor,  II  (1816), 
83-86. 

2Thomas  P.  Hunt  was  a  step-son  of  Dr.  Moses  Hoge.  He  became  a 
famous  temperance  lecturer.  His  Autobiography  has  been  published 
by  his  daughter  (Wilkes-Barre,  Pa:  1901).  In  these  pages  there  are 
several  interesting  anecdotes  of  Dr.  Hoge,  who  was  a  man  of  a  very 
impressive  personality.  John  Randolph  is  credited  with  the  remark 
that  there  were  only  two  men  who  could  quiet  the  crowd  on  the 
green  at  Prince  Edward  Court — 'Patrick  Henry  by  his  eloquence  and 
Dr.  Hoge  by  simply  passing  through.'  [Patrick  Henry  died  before 
Dr.  Hoge  came  to  Prince  Edward,  so  that  the  crowd  must  have 
been   often   irrepressible] 

"In  October  181 5  Dr.  Hoge  wrote — 'Mr.  Kennon  in  the  character  of 
Vice  President  will  begin  the  next  session  with  us.  I  shall  there- 
fore only  have  to  attend  to  the  Senior  Class,  and  take  the  general 
superintendence    of    the    seminary.'      [MS    Life.      Library    of    Congress] 


70      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

ble,  Isaac  Read,  Doctr.  James  Jones,  John  H.  Rice,  and  Paul 
Carrington,  Jr.,  appointed  a  Committee  to  solicit  donations  for 
the  purpose  of  providing  for  the  accommodation  of  a  Vice  Presi- 
dent and  of  establishing  a  permanent  fund  for  his  support. 

1815.  Nov.  1.    Dr.  Hoge. 

Committee  to  superintend  the  building  of  a  house  for  the  Vice 
President  [June  19 — 'the  house  called  the  "Grammar  House"  to 
be  repaired  for  the  temporary  accommodation  of  the  Vice  Presi- 
dent.'] 

Degrees  conferred :    Abraham  Venable1  and  William  Walton.2 

1816.  July  4.    Dr.  Hoge. 

William  S.  Morton  and  Carter  Page  elected  Trustees. 

Committee  to  employ  a  First  Professor  and  such  other 
Teachers  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  College. 

Committee  to  make  a  representation  of  the  condition  of  the 
College  to  the  Legislature  of  this  state,  and  solicit  public  aid  for 
the  institution. 

1816.  Dec.  23.    Dr.  Hoge. 

The  price  of  board  with  the  steward  of  this  College  to  be  ten 
dollars  per  month  until  further  order. 

The  price  of  tuition  at  this  College  to  be  forty  dollars  per 
annum. 

Committee  to  agree  with  Henry  E.  Watkins,  Treasurer  of  the 
Theological  School,  upon  the  terms  upon  which  any  money  of- 
fered by  the  Trustees  of  that  school  for  the  education  (at  the 
College)  of  poor  and  pious  youth  for  the  ministry  shall  be  re- 
ceived by  the  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College.3 

1817.  Apr.  24.    Dr.  Hoge. 

Ordered,  that  all  candidates  for  Diplomas  shall  be  subject  to 
examination  on  so  much  of  the  Languages  and  Sciences  as  may 
be  required  by  the  Board  of  Trustees. 

xAbraham  Woodson  Venable,  Member  of  Congress;  Member  Pro- 
visional Congress,  C.  S.  A. 

2The  Rev.  William  C.  Walton,  cf.,  Memoir  by  Joshua  Danforth. 
Hartford,  1837. 

3In  1812  the  Synod  of  Virginia  declared  for  a  synodical  school 
of  theology,  Lexington  (as  in  1791)  to  be  the  permanent  seat,  and 
Hampden  Sidney  the  temporary  seat  of  the  institution.  In  181 5  it  was 
decided  that  Hampden  Sidney  should  be  the  site  of  the  Theological 
Seminary,  Synod  reserving  the  power  of  removing  the  institution. 
In  1816  the  Legislature  refused  to  grant  the  School  a  charter.  Its 
Trustees  placed  their  funds  in  trust  with  the  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College.     See  Foote,   Sketches  of   Virginia,   II,   366-369. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  71 

Committee  which  superintends  the  building  of  the  Vice  Presi* 
dent's  house  to  lay  off  such  lots  as  they  may  think  proper  to 
attach  to  it. 

Committee  of  Repairs  to  make  such  alterations  and  repairs  in 
the  garret-room  of  the  Library-house  as  will  accommodate  the 
Philanthropic  Society,  which  shall  be  permitted  to  meet  in  the 
room  until  further  order. 

1817.  July  28.  Dr.  Hoge. 

Edward  Dillon  having  entered  into  a  combination  with  seven 
other  students  to  resist  the  authority  of  the  teachers  by  leaving 
the  dining  room  during  a  meal  contrary  to  an  order  of  the 
teachers  (the  others  having  made  such  acknowledgments  as 
are  satisfactory  to  the  President)  and  being  brought  before  the 
Board,  admitted  the  charge  and  justified  his  conduct,  resolved 
that  he  be  suspended  until  the  end  of  the  session. 

1817.  Dec.  25.    Dr.  Hoge. 

Ordered,  that  the  Clerk  write  to  Doctr.  John  Redman  Coxe, 
Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  re- 
questing information  in  relation  to  the  probable  price  of  such  a 
Chemical  Apparatus  as  might  suit  the  College.1 

1818.  Mar.  13.    Dr.  Hoge. 

Committee  to  vest  the  nett  proceeds  of  the  judgment  against 
Josiah  Legrand  in  such  stock  as  shall  to  them  appear  most  con- 
ducive to  the  interest  of  the  College,  except  that  the  sum  of  eight 
hundred  dollars  be  retained  until  further  orders. 

The  teachers  of  College  to  be  required  to  assess  fines  for  dam- 
ages as  soon  as  they  are  committed  by  the  students.  Committee 
to  visit  the  College  once  in  two  months  and  examine  whether 
fines  for  damages  have  been  regularly  and  properly  assessed,  and 
apply  to  repairs  out  of  the  deposit  money  the  amount  of  dam- 
ages assessed  by  the  teachers. 

Committee  to  sell  the  old  Store  house,  and  certain  lands  adja- 
cent, reserving  two  hundred  acres  at  the  lower  end  of  the  tract. 

Ordered,  that  Mr.  Cushing  be  the  Librarian  of  this  College. 

aMr.  dishing  had  arrived.  However,  progressive  movements  were 
a-foot  before  his  coming. — At  this  period,  wrote  Amos  Eaton,  "a  thirst 
for  the  natural  sciences  seemed  already  to  pervade  the  United  States 
like  the  progress  of  an  epidemic.  Such  was  the  zeal  at  Williams  Col- 
lege [in  181 7]  that  an  uncontrolable  enthusiasm  for  Natural  History- 
took  possession  of  every  mind,  and  other  departments  of  learning 
were  for  a  time  crowded  out  of  College.  The  College  authorities 
allowed  twelve  students  each  day,  72  per  week,  to  devote  their  whole 
time  to  the  collection  of  minerals,  plants  etc,  in  lieu  of  all  other 
exercises." 

Goode,  Beginnings  of  American  Science.  Smithsonian  report,  1897, 
II.   437- 


72  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1818.    Sept.  25.    Dr.  Hoge. 

Ordered,  that  each  student  of  Chemistry  be  required  to  pay- 
five  dollars  per  annum  extra  of  tuition  for  the  purpose  of  de- 
fraying the  expenses  of  chemical  experiments  and  keeping  up 
the  apparatus. 

H.  E.  Watkins  and  Richd.  N.  Venable  or  either  of  them  to  re- 
ceive the  dividends  on  the  shares  belonging  to  the  Trustees  of 
this  College  in  the  Bank  of  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Jonathan  P.  Cushing  added  to  the  Committee  to  revise  the 
laws  of  College. 

1818.  Nov.  12.  Dr.  Hoge. 

It  having  been  represented  to  the  Board  that  Mr.  Samuel  D. 
Hoge  wished  to  resign  his  office  as  teacher  in  this  College  under 
circumstances  which  rendered  it  inconvenient  to  him  to  suffer 
delay — the  Board  consented  to  his  immediate  removal  without 
the  ordinary  form  of  notice. 

Ordered,  that  Henry  E.  Watkins  be  authorized  to  settle  with 
Mr.  Cushing  on  account  of  the  expenses  incurred  on  his  late  trip 
to  Philadelphia  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  a  chemical  appara- 
tus and  some  additions  to  the  Philosophical  apparatus. 

1818.  Dec.  21.   Dr.  Hoge. 

Ordered,  that  Dr.  Hoge  be  permitted  to  admit  a  few  students 
to  occupy  the  new  brick  house  lately  occupied  by  the  Rev.  Saml. 
D.  Hoge,1  until  a  further  order  of  the  Board — and  that  the  house, 
be  occupied  on  the  same  terms  as  the  other  College  buildings. 

The  Commissioners  for  building  a  church  at  College  permitted 
to  procure  timber  for  this  purpose  on  the  College  lands. 

1819.  Jan.  29.   Dr.  Hoge. 

Mr.  Jonathan  P.  Cushing  was  elected  Professor  of  Natural 
Philosophy  and  Chemistry. 

Committee  appointed  to  revise  the  course  of  College  studies 
made  their  report. 

1819.    Feb.  5.    Dr.  Hoge. 

After  the  first  day  of  next  session  each  student  to  pay  one  dol- 
lar per  month  for  servant's  hire  and  room  rent. 

Salary  adjustments:  The  President  to  teach  the  Senior  Class 
and  receive  in  lieu  of  his  present  salary  seven  hundred  dollars. 
The  Professor  to  teach  the  Junior  and  Sophomore  classes  and  re- 

lrniis  new  brick  house  was  the  house  now  joined  to  the  old  Steward's 
hall  ('Alamo') — the  west  wing  of  the  present  establishment.  This  house 
therefore  is  the  oldest  brick  structure  of  the  College  plant — a  link  be- 
tween the  Old  and  the  New  College  group  of  buildings. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  73 

ceive  nine  hundred  dollars.  The  Grammar  Teacher  to  teach  the 
Freshman  Class  and  Grammar  School  and  receive  his  board  and 
five  hundred  dollars. 

Should  the  number  of  students  exceed  forty,  the  President 
to  receive  the  tuition  fees  until  his  salary  amounts  to  one  thou- 
sand dollars.  When  the  tuition  fees,  together  with  $500  to  be 
paid  from  the  proceeds  of  the  permanent  fund,  exceed  $2,400, 
the  surplus  to  be  applied  at  the  discretion  of  the  faculty,  in 
obtaining  aid  for  teaching  the  College  classes  or  divided  among 
themselves  according  to  their  labours  until  the  trustees  shall 
appoint  an  assistant  teacher. 

Should  the  number  of  students  be  less  than  forty,  $500  to 
be  paid  from  the  proceeds  of  the  permanent  fund,  and  the 
tuition  fees  to  be  divided  in  the  proportion  of  seven — nine — five. 

Mr.  Gilbert  Morgan  is  appointed  Teacher  of  the  Grammar 
School. 

1819.    Apr.  24.    Dr.  Hoge. 

The  Rev.  J.  H.  Rice  added  to  the  Committed  authorised  to 
appoint  agents  for  soliciting  donations,  and  that  an  increase  of 
the  College  buildings  be  considered  and  represented  by  the  com- 
mittee as  the  primary  object  of  raising  funds  in  this  way. 

Course  of  studies  adopted  for  the  students  of  this  College 
[course  arranged  in  four  classes  for  the  College,  each  class 
having  two  studies  and  a  daily  recitation  in  each  study;  grammar 
school  work  much  the  same  as  in  1812]. 

Junior"  Class — 

Winter  Session:  1st  Recitation — 

Chemistry  with  experiments  and  agri- 
culture. 
2nd  Do. — Trigonometry,  Mensuration, 
Surveying,  Navigation,  and  Conic 
Sections. 
Summer  Session:   1st  Recitation — Natural   Philosophy   and 

Astronomy,   with    Experiments. 
2nd  Do. — Horace  and  composition  in 
English  every  two  weeks  through- 
out the  year. 
Senior  Class — 

Winter  Session:     1st  Recitation — Philosophy  of  the  mind, 

Rhetoric,  Moral  Philosophy,  and 
Dissertations  in  English  every 
two  weeks,  and  Declamations 
through  the  year  of  their  own 
composition. 


74       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Summer  Session:  ist  Recitation — Law  of  Nature  and  Na- 
tions, and  Chronology,  and  the 
elements  of  General  History. 

These  studies  are  to  succeed  each  other  as  they  are  arranged. 

There  are  in  each  class  two  recitations  each  year  except  the 
Senior,  in  which  there  will  be  only  one,  that  the  Seniors  may 
have  an  opportunity  to  pay  more  attention  to  composing,  and 
review  the  studies  required.1 

Ordered,  that  the  following  gentlemen  be  appointed  as  solici- 
tors of  donations  for  this  institution — Jonathan  P.  Cushing, 
Gilbert  Morgan,  Colo.  Geo.  W.  Camp  of  Norfolk,  Benjamin 
Harrison  of  Prince  George,  Rev.  Robert  Anderson,  Rev.  John 
H.  Rice,  W.  S.  Lacy,  Rev.  Dr.  Hill,  and  the  Rev.  J.  B.  Hoge. 

These  to  be  remunerated  out  of  monies  raised  by  themselves, 
and  from  that  source  only.2 

1819.  Nov.  8-9.  Dr.  Hoge. 

James  Madison  of  Prince  Edward  elected  a  Trustee. 

The  Professor  of  Chemistry  to  occupy  the  new  brick  house  so 
long  as  appears  advisable  to  the  President. 

The  Rjev.  Matthew  Lyle,  Doct.  G.  Wilson,  and  R.  N.  Venable 
a  committee  to  draft  a  memorial  representing  the  situation  of 
the  College  and  asking  aid  of  the  Legislature  of  Virginia,  and 
that  they  offer  the  said  memorial  to  the  Legislature  or  withhold 
it  as  they  think  advisable. 

lrrhis  course  of  studies  was  published  in  full  in  the  Virginia  Literary 
and  Evangelical  Magazine  (Edited  by  John  Holt  Rice)  Vol.  II,  237-38. 
Dr.  Rice  remarks,  "We  have  more  than  once  attempted  to  turn  the 
attention  of  our  readers  to  the  literary  institutions  of  the  State.  Our 
success  has  hitherto  been  very  limited.  The  communication  which 
follows  is  the  only  one  which  has  been  received.  *  *  The  follow- 
ing seems  to  be  judicious,  inasmuch  as  it  is  well  calculated  to  exer- 
cise the  mind  and  give  it  expansion  and  vigor.  We  are  much  pleased 
to  see  the  subject  of  Agriculture  introduced.  It  falls  in  with  our 
views  and  wishes  as  to  general  improvement." 

Commencement  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  Sept  29TH,   1819 

Music — 

ist.  An   Eulogy  in  Lattin  on  the   Character  of  Marcus   Portius   Cato — 

by  Jesse  B.  Harrison. 
2nd.  An    Oration   in   English   on   Genius — by   James   H.    Brooks   elected 

by  the  Union  Society. 

Music — 

3.  A   conversation   on    fashionable   amusements — by   Edward   L.    Scruggs 

and   Daniel   A.    Penick   elected  by  the   Sophomore    Class — 

4.  A    Dialogue   on    the    good    and    bad    effects    of    Emulation   in    Public 

Education — by   Henry   N.   Pharr  and  Thos.   Davis. 

5.  An    Eulogy    in    Greek    on    the    character    of    Pericles    by    John    B. 

Clauselle. 


William  L.  Venable. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  75 

The  faculty  at  every  commencement  to  inform  by  printed  circu- 
lar letters  the  parents  or  guardians  of  the  students  belonging  to 
College  of  their  standing  in  relation  to  conduct  and  scholarship. 

Resolved:  There  shall  be  a  Professorship  of  Mathematics  in 
this  institution. 

A  committee  to  confer  with  a  Committee  of  the  Union  Society 
on  the  subject  of  their  claim  in  books  and  other  property  belong- 
ing to  the  late  Library  Company  of  Prince  Edward. 

1819.  Dec.  21.   Dr.  Hoge. 

Resolved:  That  there  shall  be  a  Professorship  of  Languages 
in  this  institution. 

The  President  and  first  Professor  presented  a  fair  transcript  of 
the  Laws  and  regulations  recently  adopted.  John  H.  Rice,  D.  D., 
and  Henry  E.  Watkins  a  committee  to  superintend  the  printing 
of  five  hundred  copies  of  the  laws. 

1820.  Apr.  26.    Dr.  Hoge. 

Clerk  to  write  to  the  members  of  the  late  Library  Company 
of  Prince  Edward  that  provided  the  Library  Company  should  not 
meet  on  next  Prince  Edward  court  day,  the  Trustees  will  then 
consider  the  said  company  as  being  dissolved,  and  will  proceed 
to  take  possession  of  the  property  of  the  Company  agreeably  to 
the  constitution  of  the  said  Library  Company  of  Prince  Edward. 

1820.   July  20.    Colo.  Samuel  W.  Venable. 

The  office  of  President  having  become  vacant  by  the  death  of 
Doct.  Hoge,1  ordered,  that  the  first  Professor  discharge  the 
duties  of  President  during  the  vacancy.  William  A.  Carrington 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  board  in  the  room  of  James  Madi- 
son, late  President  of  the  United  States,  resigned.  Doctr.  Alex- 
Music — 

6.  An  Oration  on  national  Avarice  by  Abram   S.   Hoggatt. 

7th.  An    Oration    on    the    Superiority    of    Genius    and    Learning    over 

Military    Prowess    in    exalting    national    Glory — by    Charles    W. 

Friend — elected   by   the    Philanthropic    Society. 
8.  A    Poem — review    of    British    reviewers,    by    Hugh    Caldwell    elected 

by  the  Sophomore  Class. 
(,.  An    Oration    on    Literary    Prospects    in    the    United    States    by   Josiah 

Harris  elected  b>    the   Philosophical   Society. 

[MS  programme  preserved  in  the  College  Library] 
xJohn  Randolph  to  Francis  Scott  Key:  "I  consider  Dr.  Hoge  as  the 
ablest  and  most  interesting  speaker  that  I  ever  heard,  in  the  pulpit  or 
out  of  it;  and  the  most  perfect  pattern  of  a  Christian  teacher  I  ever 
saw."  Life  of  John  Randolph  of  Roanoke,  by  Hugh  A.  Garland. 
II,    64. 


76       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

ander  of  Princeton  was  unanimously  elected  President  of  the 
College  in  the  room  of  Doct.  Hoge,  deceased. 

1820.  July  22.  Colo.  Venable. 

Committee  to  communicate  to  Doctr.  Alexander  his  appoint- 
ment as  president  &c,  authorised  to  offer  him  the  same  salary  and 
emoluments  appropriated  to  the  President  under  the  order  of 
February  5th,  1819. 

The  trustees  to  take  a  copy  of  the  subscription  paper  to  erect 
»a  new  college  edifice,  and  by  themselves  or  their  friends  to  en- 
deavor to  obtain  donations. 

Richard  N.  Venable,  Thomas  A.  Morton,  and  Rev.  Matthew 
Lyle  a  committee  to  draw  up  and  cause  to  be  published  a  state- 
ment of  the  condition — wants — designs — prospects  and  public 
utility  of  this  institution. 

Mr.  William  S.  Archer  of  Amelia  elected  a  Trustee.  Mr. 
Samuel  Branch  of  Buckingham  was  elected  a  trustee — it  appear- 
ing from  an  examination  of  the  College  Charter  that  the  insti- 
tution is  entitled  to  twenty  six  trustees,  and  Mr.  Branch's  elec- 
tion is  intended  to  complete  that  number. 

[Richmond  Enquirer,  Tuesday,  Sept.  12,  1820 

For  the  Enquirer 
To  The  Public 

At  a  time  when  the  feelings  of  our  citizens  are  so  laudably  ex- 
cited towards  the  promotion  of  knowledge,  it  has  been  thought 
to  be  the  duty  of  the  guardians  of  one  of  the  oldest  seminaries 
in  the  state,  by  a  brief  relation  of  facts  relative  to  that  institu- 
tion, to  present  to  the  public  view,  its  origin,  its  funds,  the  source 
from  whence  they  have  been  drawn,  the  application  which  has 
been  made  of  them,  some  of  the  principal  difficulties  which  the 
trustees  have  had  to  encounter,  and  also  their  present  plans  and 
designs  for  the  enlargement  of  the  seminary,  so  as  to  keep  pace 
with  the  growing  population  of  this  district,  and  the  wants  of 
the  country. 

Hampden  Sidney  College  is  situated  in  Prince  Edward  county, 
near  the  middle  ground,  between  James  River  and  the  southern 
boundary  of  Virginia — between  tide  water  and  the  mountains. 
It  was  founded  in  the  year  1776,  and  was  then  called  Hampden 
Sidney  Academy.  The  only  funds  which  it  possessed  for  many 
years  arose  from  private  donations,  made  by  the  people  of  the 
district  before  mentioned.  With  these  donations,  a  small  brick 
building  was  erected  for  the  students,  a  President's,  professor's 
and  steward's  house, — a  house  for  a  library,  for  the  philosophical 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  77 

and  chemical  apparatus — a  dining  room,  &c.  The  only  funds 
which  came  to  the  hands  of  the  trustees  for  the  support  of  the 
president  and  teachers,  was  the  money  arising  from  tuition. 

In  the  year  1783,  this  seminary  was  erected  into  a  college,  by 
an  act  of  the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia.  And  in  the  years 
1784  and  1794,  donations  were  made  to  the  College  by  the  state, 
of  two  small  tracts  of  land  that  had  escheated  to  the  common- 
wealth in  the  county  of  Prince  Edward.  These  lands  produced 
an  annual  rent,  which  did  not  much  exceed  the  sum  requisite 
to  keep  the  college  house,  and  the  appurtenant  buildings  in  re- 
pair. The  college  lands  except  a  small  tract,  have  been  sold,  and 
recently  vested  in  bank  Stock,  principally  of  the  United  States. 
About  the  year  1805,  a  voluntary  contribution  was  made  by  the 
people  residing  in  the  adjacent  counties,  for  the  establishment  of 
a  permanent  fund  for  the  College,  the  proceeds  only  of  which 
were  to  be  annually  expended.  This  contribution  was  vested  in 
bank  stock,  and  has  enabled  the  trustees  to  give  to  the  President 
of  the  College,  a  salary  of  one  hundred  pounds  in  addition  to  the 
funds  arising  from  tuition,  which  have  been  divided  between 
the  president  and  teachers. 

The  funds  of  the  College  have  been  gradually  improving.  The 
principal  of  such  donations  as  have  been  made  since  the  buildings 
were  erected,  has  been  retained,  and  the  annual  proceeds  only 
have  been  expended.  And  the  trustees  now  think  themselves 
justified  in  contracting  to  pay  to  the  president  and  professors 
$500  p.  annum,  in  addition  to  the  sum  arising  from  tuition.  This 
sum,  small  as  it  is,  is  the  highest  the  trustees  have  ever  been  able 
to  give  to  the  president  and  professors. 

Without  undertaking  to  assign  the  ruling  motive,  we  find  in  the 
poverty  of  the  institution,  sufficient  reason,  why  some  of  the 
most  distinguished  men  who  have  ever  presided  at  this  College, 
should  remove  and  take  charge  of  other  seminaries  to  the  north, 
where  they  might  have  a  better  prospect  of  support,  for  a  rising 
family.  The  same  difficulty  has  ever  presented  itself  to  the 
trustees,  in  their  attempts  to  procure  or  retain  able  professors 
and  teachers.  If  we  have  a  president  or  professor,  who  rises  to 
any  degree  of  eminence,  and  promises  usefulness  to  the  institu- 
tion, he  has  generally  considered  it  his  interest  to  leave  us,  and 
go  to  some  part  of  the  United  States,  where  talents  and  learning 
are  more  in  demand,  and  better  rewarded.  What  we  are  able 
to  offer  is  below  the  market  price.  How  humiliating  is  this  fact 
to  those  who  are  labouring  to  improve  the  state  of  literature  in 
our  country!  How  different  from  that  laudable  national  pride 
which  they  would  rejoice  to  feel,  on  seeing  their  efforts  crowned 
with  success !  But  there  are  other  difficulties  arising  from  the 
want  of  funds,  that  forbid  the  progress  of  this  institution  to 
eminence,  and  limlit  its  usefulness.     The  entire  building  is  very 


78       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

small,  entirely  insufficient  for  the  public  demands.  The  rooms 
of  college,  together  with  all  the  rooms  that  can  be  obtained  in 
the  buildings  appurtenant  thereto,  are  insufficient  for  the  accom- 
modation of  students  now  at  college.  Four  or  five  students 
occupy  one  room,  when  perhaps,  there  should  not  be  more  than 
two  to  a  room,  were  the  college  buildings  sufficiently  extensive. 
Crowding  them  together  in  this  manner,  tends  greatly  to  interrupt 
their  studies,  and  promote  disorder. 

Again,  should  the  professors  and  teachers  be  willing  to  rely 
for  their  support  on  the  tuition  money  alone,  and  calculate  on 
their  own  talents  and  exertions,  to  secure  the  public  patronage 
and  give  celebrity  to  the  institution;  yet  the  future  prospects  of 
public  usefulness,  and  private  advancement  must  be  very  limited, 
until  additional  buildings  shall  be  erected  for  the  accommodation 
of  the  students. 

Influenced  by  these  considerations,  the  trustees  have  thought 
it  expedient  to  propose  to  the  friends  of  the  institution,  the  erec- 
tion of  a  new  college  building;  and  in  order  to  effect  it,  they 
will  address  themselves  to  the  liberality  of  those  who  feel  an  in- 
terest in  the  college,  who  have  supported  it  thus  far,  and  calcu- 
late on  this  as  the  most  convenient  place  to  educate  their  sons. 

The  public  are  apprised  of  the  loss  we  have  recently  sustained 
in  the  death  of  our  much  lamented  president  the  Rev.  Dr.  Moses 
Hoge.  The  efforts  we  may  make  to  improve  the  condition  of  the 
college  funds,  may  have  much  influence  in  procuring  some  one 
to  fill  this  vacancy,  who  may  equal  the  wants  and  expectations 
of  the  public. 

Thus  have  we,  acting  in  obedience  to  an  order  of  the  board 
of  trustees,  given  a  brief  history  of  the  institution.  We  have 
endeavored  to  give  a  general  view  of  the  buildings  and  funds  of 
college,  their  origin,  their  application,  and  present  condition.  We 
have  also  pointed  out  some  of  the  principal  difficulties  which 
this  institution  has  had  to  contend  with,  and  lastly,  we  have 
shown  the  present  views  and  designs  of  the  trustees  to  enlarge 
the  college  buildings,  so  as  to  afford  the  students  better  and  more 
extensive  accommodations. 

To  this  we  shall  add  some  reflections  which  the  occasion  has 
suggested.  And  in  the  first  place  we  would  address  ourselves 
to  those  who  are  in  middle  life,  and  whose  children  are  at  the 
proper  age  to  receive  an  education.  When  an  application  for 
aid  to  enlarge  the  college  buildings  shall  be  mjade,  will  any  who 
profess  to  be  the  advocates  of  learning,  be  content  to  say,  "These 
are  difficult  times  to  embark  in  such  an  undertaking,  and  that 
we  had  better  postpone  it  for  the  present?"  If  this  is  not  a  favor- 
able time,  when  will  one  more  favorable  occur? — We  live  but  in 
the  present  time. — Our  children  are  now  on  our  hands,  and  our 
obligations  to  them  as  parents,  demand  of  us,  that  we  instruct 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  79 

them  in  the  best  manner  we  can.  Before  what  may  be  called 
a  favorable  time  shall  arrive,  the  period  of  instruction  will  be 
past,  and  we  shall  have  fulfilled  or  omitted,  the  duty  of  parents, 
and  they  will  have  obtained  or  lost  the  opportunity  of  educa- 
tion. Are  times  as  difficult  now  as  when  our  fathers  erected  the 
present  college  building?  It  was  then  the  commencement  of  the 
revolutionary  war.  There  was  something  in  the  manly  charac- 
ter of  those  days,  that  made  practicable,  whatever  was  desired. 
This  spirit  is  well  worthy  of  our  imitation. 

Whether  the  influence  of  this  institution  has  compensated  this 
district  of  country,  for  the  donations  that  have  been  made  to 
it — what  has  been  the  influence  on  the  morals,  manners,  and 
intelligence  of  the  people,  is  a  question  which  every  one  must 
decide  according  to  his  own  observations.  But  its  effects  are 
not  confined  to  this  limited  district  of  country. — The  sons  of 
Hampden  Sidney  may  be  found  scattered  through  the  remotest 
parts  of  the  Union,  occupying  some  of  the  most  important  sta- 
tions in  their  country. 

Of  the  original  benefactors  of  this  institution  scarcely  one  re- 
mains. And  time  has  considerably  thinned  the  ranks  of  those 
who  were  first  educated  there.  Yet  some  of  these  remain  scat- 
tered throughout  the  country  to  bear  it  honorable  testimony. 
Permit  us  to  address  ourselves  to  such  and  ask,  what  were  the 
expenses  and  sacrifices  which  your  fathers  made,  under  the  pres- 
sure of  those  times,  to  erect  this  seminary  and  procure  your 
education  ?  Do  you  disapprove  of  the  course  they  took  ?  Or  do 
you  not  rather  consider  it  the  most  valuable  part  of  your  paternal 
estate  ?  Has  it  not  greatly  contributed  to  enable  you  to  take  that 
rank  in  society  which  you  have  maintained?  Is  not  the  taste 
for  literature  which  you  there  acquired,  one  of  the  greatest 
amusements  and  comforts  in  your  retirement  and  decline  of  life? 
We  are  persuaded  there  are  but  few,  very  few,  who  will  not  an- 
swer these  questions  in  the  affirmative.  It  is  not  long  since  you 
heard  of  the  death  of  that  polite  and  amiable  man,  that  zealous 
friend  of  science,  who  so  greatly  contributed  to  establish,  and 
first  presided  at  Hampden  Sidney.  When  the  death  of  Samuel 
Stanhope  Smith  was  announced,  many  of  you  in  private,  wiped 
from  your  cheek  the  tear  of  love  and  gratitude  and  lamented  that 
an  opportunity  had  never  offered  to  manifest  your  obligations  to 
him.  Here  is  the  early  object  of  his  affections — the  child  of  his 
youth — assist  her,  she  stands  in  need  of  your  aid — now  bereaved, 
she  looks  to  you,  and  calls  you  her  eldest  sons — will  you  deny  it  ? 

The  erection  of  this  seminary  was  a  favorite  object  of  our 
fathers.  "We  will,"  said  they,  "begin  it,  our  children  will  carry 
it  on.  It  will  be  in  vain  to  purchase  at  the  price  of  our  blood,  the 
blessings  of  freedom  for  our  descendants,  if  we  do  not  give  with 
it,  that  mental  improvement  which  will  enable  them  to  estimate 


8o       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

its  value,  and  preserve  the  inheritance."  Shall  we  fulfil  these 
just  expectations,  or  have  such  reflections  lost  their  influence  on 
the  community  ? 

Matthew  Lyle, 
Thos.  A.  Morton, 
Rich'd  N.  Venable. 

The  Anniversary  of  Hampden  Sidney  College. 

The  public  examination  of  the  Acadmy  and  of  the  College,  will 
commence  on  the  last  Monday  in  September.  The  trustees  who 
may  attend,  and  the  faculty  of  College,  form  the  board  of  exami- 
nation. 

The  examination  of  the  candidates  for  diplomas  of  the  Bache- 
lor's degree  will  be  on  Wednesday  A.  M. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  board  of  trustees  will  be  on  Wed- 
nesday. 

The  public  exercises  of  the  Commencement  will  begin  at  n 
o'clock  on  Thursday. 

As  business  of  unusual  importance  will  come  before  the  board, 
the  presence  of  every  member  is  important. 

The  counsel  and  influence  of  the  members  from  distant  coun- 
ties are  solicited  on  this  occasion;  and  their  attendance  as  early 
as  on  Tuesday  will  be  gratifying  to  the  trustees  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  College,  and  serviceable  in  preparing  the  business  for  the 
annual  meeting.] 

1820.    Sept.  28.    Mr.  Lyle. 

Th.  Miller,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Rice,  W.  S.  Archer,  and  Henry  E. 
Watkins  a  committee  to  make  application  to  the  next  Legislature 
for  aid  to  the  funds  of  this  institution. 

Degrees  conferred:1  John  B.  Clauselle,  Josiah  Harris,  Thomas 
Davis. — Rev.  A.  W.  Kilpatrick,  Rev.  Edward  Baptist,  Henry 
Carrington,  and  John  Dabney,  admitted  to  the  second  degree 
in  the  arts. 

1In  this  Calendar,  the  times  for  conferring  degrees,  the  number  of 
degree  men  &c,  have  been  carefully  noted  thus  far.  Hence  forward 
such  items  will  be  omitted,  making  the  era  of  the  Old  College  termi- 
nate with  the  year  of  Dr.  H'oge's  death.  The  publication  of  Cata- 
logues began  in  1822,  (for  the  session  1821-22)  about  the  time  when 
the  Yale  catalogues  begin,  and  several  years  before  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania   began   to   issue    catalogues. 

Sixty  seven  A.  B.  degrees  were  conferred  in  course  between  1786 
and  1820.  Of  these,  twenty  four  seem  to  have  been  ministers,  four- 
teen what  might  be  called  public  men,  four  educators,  and  four  physi- 
cians. This  is  not  a  strict  classification  and  the  records  are  meagre. 
No  doubt  most  of  the  unaccounted   for  were  masters  of  plantations. 

In  the  circumstances  a  preponderance  of  ministers  during  this  period 
is  to  be  expected.     The   General   Catalogue    [1776-1906]    shows  that  of 


2Ll 


y? 


i^V   </\JgR 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  81 

{To  the  Speakers  and  Members  of  the  General  Assembly  of 
Virginia  : 

The  undersigned  having  been  appointed  a  Committee  by  the 
trustees  of  Hampden  Sydney  College  to  present  a  petition  to  the 
General  Assembly  for  pecuniary  assistance,  on  behalf  of  said 
College,  beg  leave  respectfully  to  represent. 

That  the  College  aforesaid  has  been  founded  about  fifty  years, 
that  during  all  that  period  it  has  been  supported  almost  exclu- 
sively by  the  munificence  of  private  individuals,  that  it  has 
reared  a  number  of  men  of  eminent  usefulness  in  the  country, 
and  some  of  distinguished  abilities.  That  it  is  situated  in  the 
centre  of  a  section  of  the  state  important  on  account  of  the  num- 
bers, wealth,  and  general  intelligence  of  its  inhabitants ;  that  it 
is  favoured  with  a  Charter,  characterized  by  liberal  views  and 
sound  principles — that  it  is  governed  by  a  code  of  laws  matured 
T}y  experience  of  half  a  century — that  an  enlarged  course  of 
study  is  pursued  by  its  members ;  and  that  it  is  growing  in  repu- 
tation. 

The  institution  suffers  however  greatly  in  its  highest  interests, 
for  want  of  better  accommodations  for  the  students — at  present 
they  are  subjected  to  the  great  inconvenience  of  being  crowded 
together  to  the  number  of  4  or  5  in  a  single  room  in  a  small 
building,  much  impaired  by  time — nevertheless,  such  is  the  esti- 
mation in  which  the  college  is  held,  that  with  all  these  disad- 
vantages it  is  still  crowded,  and  would  be  frequented  by  much 
greater  numbers,  could  they  by  any  possibility  find  accommoda- 
tions— On  this  account  it  has  appeared  indispensable  that  new 
college  buildings  should  be  erected.  The  present  fund  of  the 
institution  (consisting  of  an  income  of  five  hundred  dollars  only) 

the  940  degree  men  listed,  half  exactly  have  been  ministers.  Before 
1820  there  was  a  special  impulse  in  that  direction,  due  to  the  fact  that 
the  President  after  1807  was  also  Professor  of  Theology,  acting  either 
for  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover  or  the  Synod  of  Virginia.  As  tn 
Paxtcn's  case,  Tutors  in  the  College  were  at  times  employed  on  the 
footing  of  post-graduate  students  in  Theology,  or  it  might  be  that  the 
theological  student  was  assigned  tutorial  duties  and  at  the  end  of  his 
studies  in  Theology  was  given  a  Bachelor's  degree:  presumably,  hav- 
ing   followed    the    required    curriculum. 

The  number  of  students  in  1819  was  sixty-three,  in  1820,  eighty 
[MS  records].  In  1835  President  Cushing  stated  that  the  average 
attendance  from  the  foundation  of  the  College  had  been  about  sixty. 
Therefore,  from  estimates,  the  average  before  1821  was  about  fifty. 
It  is  interesting  to  observe  that  the  average  attendance  at  the  three 
Virginia  Colleges  was  about  the  same  from  1800  to  1821.  See,  His- 
torical Papers,  Washington  and  Lee  University:  Decades  1799-1829; 
and  History  and  General  Catalogue  College  of  William  and  Mary,  p. 
117— Total  attendance  at  William  and  Mary,  1786-1823,  1645  students, 
"average    about    forty   five.' 


82       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

is  so  small  that  if  the  whole  were  exhausted  the  necessary  build- 
ings could  scarcely  be  even  put  under  cover.  In  this  situation, 
and  under  these  circumstances,  the  trustees  have  determined  to 
apply  to  the  Legislature  for  a  part  of  the  proceeds  of  the  Literary 
fund — and  they  hope  the  application  will  not  be  disregarded, 
when  it  is  considered,  that  Hampden  Sidney  is  the  only  College 
on  the  South  side  of  James  River,  and  perhaps  the  only  Literary 
Institution  in  that  whole  important  and  enlightened  section  of 
country,  that  can  present  because  of  its  celebrity,  any  very  strong 
claim  at  the  present  time,  to  public  favour. — The  undersigned 
beg  permission  farther  to  suggest,  that  this  large  section  of  the 
state,  has  never  yet  had  a  due  share  in  the  disbursements  from 
that  fund,  the  object  of  which  is  to  bring  education  in  its  best 
forms  as  near  as  possible  to  every  family  in  Virginia.  The 
undersigned  herewith  lay  before  the  General  Assembly  a  copy 
of  the  Charter  of  Hampden  Sydney  College,  framed  by  some  of 
the  most  virtuous  and  enlightened  statesmen,  who  ever  adorned 
the  country,  together  with  a  copy  of  the  laws  of  the  College  as 
they  at  present  exist,  the  course  of  studies  pursued  in  the  insti- 
tution, and  a  list  of  the  Trustees  under  whose  guardianship  the 
whole  operations  of  the  College  are  placed. 

The  undersigned  conclude,  by  order  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
in  praying  the  General  Assembly  to  grant  to  the  College  afore- 
said, from  the  proceeds  of  the  Literary  fund,  such  assistance 
as  in  their  wisdom  may  seem  meet — and — as  in  duty  bound  they 
will  ever  pray — 

Wm.  S.  Archer  of  Amelia 
Henry  E.  Watkins  of  Pr.  Edward 
Th.  Miller  of  Powhatan 
John  H.  Rice  of  Richmond. 

From  Copy  preserved  by  Richard  N.  VenableJ] 

1820.   Sept.  29.   Samuel  W.  Venable. 

Whereas  it  is  highly  desirable  that  the  various  branches  of 
science  and  learning  should  be  taught  as  perfectly  as  possible; 
and  inasmuch  as  this  is  most  effectually  accomplished  by  dividing 
the  business  of  instruction  among  a  number  of  Professors,  who 
shall  give  their  whole  time  and  talents  to  the  particular  de- 
partments committed  to  their  care;  and  whereas  there  may  be 
public-spirited  individuals  or  associations  of  individuals  who, 
for  the  promotion  of  sound  and  good  learning  in  our  country, 
may  be  induced  to  establish  professorships  in  the  College:  or- 
dained, 

1.  That  twenty  thousand  dollars  shall  be  sufficient  to  estab- 
lish a  professorship  in  Hampden  Sidney  College. 

2.  That  it  shall  be  lawful   for  any  person  or  association  of 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  83 

persons  to  endow  a  profesorship,  and  to  designate  the  name  by 
which  such  professorship  shall  forever  be  distinguished. 

3.  That  such  persons  or  associations  may  erect  buildings  on 
College  lands  assigned,  for  the  accommodation  of  the  professor 
and  of  the  pupils  who  may  attend  his  lectures ;  provided  that  the 
whole  of  such  institution  be  under  the  general  laws  of  College. 

4.  That  should  a  professorship  of  Theology  be  thus  endowed, 
the  founders  to  have  the  privilege  of  nominating  and  the  Trustees 
of  Hampden  Sidney  College  that  of  appointing  the  professor; 
in  case  of  disagreement,  those  endowing  such  professorship  to 
receive  and  dispose  of  the  proceeds  of  the  funds  during  the 
vacancy. 

5.  Provided,  however,  that  a  professor  of  Theology  thus  ap- 
pointed and  supported,  shall  not  have  a  seat  at  the  board  of  the 
faculty  of  College,  unless  such  professor  should  be  president  of 
College.  And  provided  also,  that  the  students  in  College  shall 
not  be  required  to  attend  the  lectures  of  such  professor  in  order 
to  obtain  a  diploma.1 

Revised  Course  of  Studies  adopted  for  Grammar  School  and 
College. 

Committee,  J.  H.  Rice,  R.  N.  Venable,  John  P.  Wilson,  Thomas 
A.  Morton,  and  Thomas  Miller  to  draw  up  a  subscription  paper 
containing  a  plan  of  the  buildings  necessary  at  Hampden  Sidney 
College,  according  to  the  views  of  this  Board,  and  to  appoint 
fit  and  special  agents  to  solicit  donations  upon  the  terms  which 
shall  be  stated  in  such  subscription  paper. 

Messrs.  Lyle,  James  Morton,  Berkeley,  Miller,  and  J.  P.  Wil- 
son appointed  a  Committee  of  College  for  one  year,  or  until  an- 
other Committee  shall  be  appointed.  Duty  of  •  this  committee 
to  examine  the  Students  of  the  Academy  and  the  classes  of 
College,  at  the  Spring  and  Fall  examinations,  and  the  Senior 
Class  at  their  examinations  for  degrees  of  Bachelor  of  Arts, 
and  recommend  such  to  the  Board  as  they  shall  deem  worthy  of 
diplomas — To  devise  and  recommend  practical  means  of  en- 
larging the  Library  and  the  Chemical  and  Philosophical  appa- 
ratus— To  consult  for  the  general  improvement  in  the  instruction 
and  government  of  College,  audit  the  accounts  of  their  own 
expenditures  for  improvement,  and  to  lay  before  the  Board  at 
their  annual  meeting  a  written  report,  embracing  everything  on 
which  it  concerns  the  Trustees  of  the  institution  to  be  informed. 

The  Faculty  of  College  authorised  and  directed  to  publish 
annually  an  account  of  the  Corrrmencement,  with  the  order  of 
the  exercises  and  the  names  of  the  persons  who  have  received 
the  honours  of  College. 

^hese  are  careful  clauses,  which  must  not  have  seemed  very  allur- 
ing to  those  interested  in  the  establishment  of  a  department  of  theology. 


84       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Resolved,  that  this  Board  considers  it  to  be  the  bounden  duty 
of  every  member  to  attend  the  annual  meetings  at  Commence- 
ment. 

1820.   Nov.  10.   Samuel  W.  Venable. 

Form  of  the  subscription  paper  to  be  circulated  to  obtain  sub- 
scriptions for  building  a  new  College — 

'The  local  situation  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  about  midway 
between  James  River  and  the  line  of  North  Carolina,  the  Blue 
Ridge  and  tidewater,  is  such  as  to  make  it  very  convenient,  and 
therefore  an  important  institution,  to  a  large  section  of  the 
State.  It  has  moreover  a  charter  as  ample  and  liberal  as  could 
be  wished,  a  code  of  laws  approved  by  experience,  a  course  of 
studies  sufficient  for  education,  a  good  philosophical  and  chemi- 
cal apparatus,  and  Teachers  of  known  abilities  and  fidelity.  Sur- 
rounded as  it  is  by  an  enlightened  and  moral  population,  it  would 
furnish  the  facilities  of  a  liberal  education  to  a  very  large  and 
respectable  part  of  the  citizens  of  Virginia  much  cheaper  than 
could  be  obtained  at  a  greater  distance,  but  for  the  want  of  suf- 
ficiently large  buildings. 

At  present  it  is  necessary  to  crowd  four  or  five  students  into  a 
single  room,  to  their  great  inconvenience  and  the  serious  interrup- 
tion of  their  studies.  It  is  with  difficulty  that  in  this  way  fifty 
or  sixty  young  men  can  be  accommodated. 

The  Trustees  under  the  influence  of  these  considerations  have 
determined  to  attempt  the  erection  of  a  new  building  upon  the 
plan  of  Princeton  College,  which  they  think  suited  to  the  wants 
and  convenience  of  the  public,  and  which  as  to  size  and  general 
appearance  they  mean  to  pursue,  reserving  to  themselves  the  dis- 
cretion of  making  such  alterations  as  further  reflection  and  ob- 
servation may  induce  them  to  believe  best,  and  which  when  com- 
pleted will  accommodate  upwards  of  one  hundred  students.  The 
plan  is  such  that  the  building  may  commence  at  one  end  and 
progress  according  to  the  funds  which  may  be  commanded  until 
the  whole  shall  be  completed. 

This  institution  was  founded  and  has  been  supported  by  the 
liberality  and  public  spirit  of  an  enlightened  and  generous  peo- 
ple. Appeals  to  that  public  spirit  and  liberality  have  never  been 
made  altogether  in  vain.  At  this  period,  when  a  powerful  im- 
pulse has  been  given  to  the  great  subject  of  education,  and  its 
importance  is  more  fully  understood  and  more  deeply  felt  than 
ever,  the  Trustees  are  confident  that  they  shall  not  apply  in 
vain  to  the  people  of  the  southern  section  of  the  state  for  the 
means  of  erecting  a  College,  which  will  afford  the  opportunity 
of  giving  their  sons  a  complete  education  among  themselves.' 

Richard  N.  Venable,  James  Madison,  Isaac  Read,  Henry  A. 
Watkins,  James  H.  Fitzgerald,  John  P.  Wilson,  Samuel  Branch, 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  85 

Thomas  Miller,  W.  S.  Archer,  James  Bruce,  William  Carring- 
ton,  James  Jones,  and  John  H.  Rice  to  obtain  subscriptions  in 
their  respective  counties.    Special  agents  also  to  be  appointed. 

1821.   Jan.  15.   Samuel  W.  Venable. 

Instrument  of  writing  adopted  regarding  a  deed  for  four 
acres  of  land  made  to  the  President  and  Trustees  of  Hampden 
Sidney  College  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Moses  Hoge,  in  trust. — '*  * 
This  lot  and  house  was  intended  in  the  first  place  as  the  meet- 
ing house  or  place  for  divine  worship  for  that  part  of  Cumber- 
land congregation  residing  in  Prince  Edward  County.  But  it 
was  also  specially  intended  to  benefit  the  College  of  Hampden 
Sidney  by  affording  a  convenient  and  comfortable  house  for 
divine  worship  to  all  belonging  to  said  College  and  by  affording 
to  the  President,  who  has  always  hitherto  been  the  minister  of 
the  congregation,  an  opportunity  of  preaching  to  and  meeting 
with  the  congregation  without  leaving  the  care  of  the  College. 
This  Board  knowing  the  facts  to  be  as  here  stated,  and  believing 
that  the  interest  of  the  College  will  be  promoted  by  the  accept- 
ance of  the  transfer  of  the  four  acres  of  land  aforesaid,  for  the 
uses  and  purposes  hereinbefore  expressed  in  this  statement  more 
fully  and  truly  than  in  the  deed  itself,  do  hereby  for  ourselves 
and  for  our  successors  on  the  terms  aforesaid  accept  the  same/1 

/Before  the  building  of  this  Church,  (a  brick  structure  which  stood 
for  about  forty  years  on  the  site  of  the  present  church),  services  at  the 
College  had  been  held  in  the  old  Common  Hall.  A  layman  being 
elected  President  of  the  College  in  1821,  conditions  became  much  changed, 
particularly  when  the  theological  seminary  was  established  in  1823  and 
the  President  of  the  College  was  conventionally  to  have  nothing  to  do 
with  the  training  of  theological  students  as  such.  After  the  new 
church  was  built,  President  Cushing  employed  a  chaplain  (the  Rev. 
James  Wharey)  for  a  few  months.  In  1823  the  Rev.  J.  D.  Paxton, 
who  had  been  a  Tutor  in  the  College  from  1810  to  1812,  was  installed 
as  Pastor  of  the  College  Church,  or  rather  of  the  Cumberland  congre- 
gation, that  part  including  the  College  Church.  In  his  Reminiscences  Dr. 
Paxton  says — 

"In  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  [1823]  Dr.  Rice  moved  to  Prince 
Edward  and  opened  the  theological  school.  A  new  state  of  things 
was  taking  place.  A  large  college  building  had  been  erected  under  the 
general  supervision  of  President  Cushing;  a  new  brick  church  had 
been  built,  the  old  Hall  removed,  and  preparations  were  being  made  to 
put  up  buildings  for  the  theological  seminary  *  *  *  In  a  conver- 
sation which  I  had  with  Mr.  Jefferson,  on  an  occasional  visit  to  Char- 
lottesville, he  took  pains  to  state  and  explain  [his  plan  for  chaplains] 
to  me,  and  expressed  a  wish  that  the  Presbyterians,  who  up  to  that 
time  had  done  more  to  promote  education  than  any  other  branch  of 
the  Church  in  the  south,   would  avail  themselves  of  the  opportunity. 

The  congregation  owned  a  number  of  slaves,  who  were  hired  out 
annually,  and  the  proceeds  applied  to  pay  the  salary  of  their  pastor.  On 
finding  that  my  support  was  drawn  almost  entirely  from  these  slaves, 
for  whose  instruction  very  little  was  done,  I  felt  more  and  more  uneasy. 


86       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Samuel  W.  Venable  at  the  same  time  presented  to  the  Board 
a  deed  for  eleven  acres,  one  rood,  and  thirty  seven  poles  of 
land  made  by  himiself  to  the  President  and  Trustees  of  the  Col- 
lege in  trust  for  the  use  of  the  congregation  aforementioned. 

1821.   Apr.  26.   Dr.  Rice. 

Clement  Carrington,  W.  M.  Watkins,  Thomas  A.  Morton, 
Henry  A.  Watkins,  and  Isaac  Read  appointed  a  Committee  to 
receive  proposals  and  to  contract  for  the  building  of  a  College 
edifice  of  brick,  size  and  description  specified. 

The  Treasurer  directed  to  withdraw  from  the  Fire  Insurance 
Company,  when  he  shall  have  paid  the  instalments  now  due  from 
the  College. 

1821.    Sept.  26-27.    Dr.  Rice. 

The  College  Librarian  to  take  charge  of  the  books  and  prop- 
erty of  the  Prince  Edward  Library  Company  which  has  ceased 
to  act.  Union  Society  permitted  to  withdraw  from  the  said 
Library  such  books  as  they  may  have  deposited  as  a  contribution 
for  shares  &c. 

Death  of  Colo.  Samuel  W.  Venable — 'Hampden  Sidney  Col- 
lege has  lost  one  of  her  firmest  supporters,  and  her  board  of 
Trustees  one  of  its  most  efficient  members.'1 

The  report  of  the  Committee  of  College  was  received  by  the 
Board  [14  pp.] — 

'Your  committee  will  remark  in  the  first  place  that  such  have 
been  the  order  and  discipline  in  College,  and  the  attention  of 
the  students  to  their  studies  during  the  last  twelve  months  that 
they  have  never  been  convened  by  the  Faculty  for  the  purpose 
of  correcting  any  irregularity  in  the  deportment  of  the  students 
of  the  institution,  nor  have  they  been  informed  of  any  which 
would  have  rendered  their  being  convened  either  necessary  or 
proper.    This  fact  is  alike  creditable  to  the  officers  of  College  and 

and  desired  much  to  do  something  for  them.  A  good  many  slaves 
attended  church,  and  occasionally  I  preached  specially  to  them.  My 
father  owned  a  family  of  slaves  and  I  had  grown  up  with  them.  My 
wife's  father,  who  was  a  slave  holder,  gave  and  sent  to  her  [on  coming 
to  Prince  Edward]  a  family  of  house  servants,  seven  or  eight  in  num- 
ber, most  of  them  small.  These  we  sent  to  Liberia.  *  *  *  I  sold 
my  house  and  small  tract  of  land  at  a  great  sacrifice,  and  left  for  the 
free  states   with   my   family. 

[cf.  Paxton's  Letters  on  Slavery  Addressed  to  the  Cumberland  Congre- 
gation, Lexington,  Kentucky  1833] 

x"During  the  whole  of  his  life  Dr.  Alexander  was  accustomed  to 
speak  of  Mr.  Venable  as  the  most  remarkable  instance  of  wisdom 
matured    by    experience    and    observation    that    he    had    ever    known." 

Life  of  Archibald  Alexander,  p.  130. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  87 

the  young  gentlemen  attached  thereto' — Detailed  report  regarding 
the  studies  and  the  examinations  in  Academy  and  College — 'With 
regard  to  the  Philosophical  and  Chemical  Apparatus  belonging 
to  the  institution,  your  Committee  report,  that  it  has  been  some- 
what increased  and  put  into  a  state  of  complete  preservation 
since  the  last  meeting  of  the  Trustees.  It  is  sufficient  for  an 
enlarged  course  of  experiments  in  those  departments  of  science, 
and  although  it  would  be  very  desirable  to  have  more  additions 
made  to  it,  with  the  present  restricted  funds  of  College  your 
committee  decline  recommending  any  immediate  appropriation 
for  that  purpose.  The  Library  of  College  is  very  deficient,  con- 
sisting only  of  five  hundred  volumes,  which  are  however  in  a 
good  state  of  preservation,  and  are  the  production  of  the  most 
useful  and  approved  authors.  *  *  A  Committee  has  been  ap- 
pointed specially  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  whether  the 
Library  of  the  Prince  Edward  Company  has  not  reverted  to  the 
College.  If  such  should  be  found  to  be  the  fact  here  would  arise 
at  once  a  very  considerable  and  valuable  addition  to  the  College 
Library.1 — The  next  subject  to  which  your  committee  would 
call  attention  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  relates  to  the 
Steward's  department  as  connected  with  College.  The  import- 
ance of  having  a  Steward  who  will  provide  wholesome  and  com- 
fortable diet,  and  a  sufficiency  of  it  too,  for  the  students,  must 
be  obvious  to  every  one — without  such  constant  supply  the  Col- 
lege cannot  prosper  for  any  length  of  time  *  *  It  may  be 
proper  to  remark  that  the  Steward  should  likewise  be  a  man, 
moral,  kind,  and  affectionate,  one  whose  example  would  never 
prove  detrimental,  whose  advice  might  often  be  beneficial.' — 
Recommendations  regarding  a  new  house  for  the  President — ■ 
'Finally  your  Committee  will  observe  that  during  their  last  ses- 
sion the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia  pledged  themselves  by 
a  solemn  act  that  the  next  money  in  the  way  of  income  which 
arose  to  the  Literary  Fund  above  the  present  appropriation  from 
its  revenue  should  be  appropriated  as  far  as  twenty  thousand 
dollars  annually  to  such  Colleges,  academies,  and  intermediate 
schools  as  the  Legislature  might  deem  fit  objects  of  endowment. 
To  a  respectable  portion  of  this  appropriation,  whensoever  such 
pledge  shall  be  redeemed,  from  its  antiquity,  the  character  of 
its  founders  as  illustrated  by  its  liberal  and  patriotic  Charter, 
from  the  fact  that  it  has  been  almost  exclusvely  sustained  by 
the  efforts  of  private  individuals,  from  its  hitherto  extensive  use- 
fulness  as   evinced   by   the   number   of    distinguished   men   and 

^oth  Literary  Societies,  (the  Union  established  in  1789,  the  Philan- 
thropic in  1805)  had  been  purchasing  books  for  a  good  many  years. 
It  has  been  estimated  that  the  two  Societies  spent,  before  1890,  as 
much  as  $20,000  for  books.  These  libraries  have  been  for  some  twenty 
years  made  over  to  the  College. 


88  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

worthy  citizens  whom  it  has  sent  forth  to  benefit  and  enlighten 
their  country,  from  its  present  enlarged  course  of  studies  and 
plan  of  operation  now  going  into  effect,  from  the  zeal,  ability,  and. 
benevolence  of  its  patrons,  and  from  its  local  situation,  it  is  be- 
lieved the  College  of  Hampden  Sidney  is  fully  and  justly  entitled; 
and  your  Committee  have  too  much  confidence  in  the  wisdom,, 
justice,  and  magnanimity  of  their  representatives  to  think  for  a. 
moment  that  it  will  be  much  longer  withheld.' — Recommended 
that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  act  jointly  with  the  Faculty  in 
corresponding  on  this  subject  with  the  Directors  of  William  and 
Mary  and  of  Washington  College.1 

Mr.  Peter  McViccar  of  Maryland,  a  graduate  of  Union  Col- 
lege in  New  York,  to  be  Preceptor  of  the  Academy,  in  the  place 
of  Mr.  Harris,  who  has  resigned  that  station — having  spent  one 
year  of  laborious  exertions  in  the  service  of  the  College,  merits 
for  his  conduct  the  thanks  of  the  Board  of  Trustees. 

Jonathan  P.  Cushing,  Professor  of  Chemistry  and  Natural 
Philosophy  was  elected  President  of  the  institution. 

Colo.  Armistead  Burwell  elected  Steward. 

1The  following  extracts  are  of  interest,  as  showing  the  status  of  this, 
matter.     Mr.  Jefferson's  idea  was  distinct,  and  he  was  not  to  be  drawn 
aside.     The  material  is  taken   from  the  very  interesting  Early  History 
of   the    University   of  Virginia,   as  contained  in   the   letters   of   Thomas 
Jefferson    and    Joseph    C.    Cabell    [edited    by    N.    F.    Cabell,    Hampden 
Sidney,    1825].    Richmond,    1856. 
Cabell  to  Jefferson,  Richmond,  Jan  14,   1822   [p.  233-34] — 
'I   have  had   a  very   long  interview   with   Mr.   Rice.     He   and  myself 
differed  on  some  points;  but   agreed  in  the  propriety  of   a  firm  union 
between  the  friends  of  the  University  and  the  Colleges,  as  to  measures 
of  common  interest,  and  of  postponing  for  future  discussion  and  settle- 
ment  points   on   which   we   differ    *     *     Mr.    Rice    assured   me   that   he 
was  a  warm  friend  of  the  University/ 

Note  by  the  Editor,   regarding  Dr.    Rice    [p  236] — 

'It  is  believed  that  Virginia  did  not  contain  within  her  broad  limits 
and  among  her  most  enlightened  sons,  one  who  was  more  truly  attached' 
to  her  soil  and  people,  or  who  more  ardently  desired  both  the  diffusion 
of  knowledge  among  the  masses  and  the  improvement  of  education  in  its- 
higher  grades.' 

Cabell  to  Jefferson,  Richmond,  Jan  23,   1823 — 

'As  to  colleges  and  academies  I  differ  from  some  of  our  friends.  I 
would  vote  for  an  appropriation  to  Hampden  Sidney,  and  not  wait 
till  the  funds  shall  be  sufficient  for  the  whole  corps  of  colleges.  I 
think   some  aid  to  that  college  would  now   be   useful   and   well  timed.*" 

Jefferson   to    Cabell,    Monticello,    Jan   28,    1823,    [p.   271.] — 

'I  still  differ  from  you  as  to  giving  a  dollar  to  Hampden  Sidney. 
Let  this,  with  all  the  other  intermediate  academies,  be  taken  up  in* 
their  turn  and  provided  for  systematically  and  proportionally.  To  give 
to  that  singly  will  be  a  departure  from  principle,   will  make  the  others 


William    H.    Cabell. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  89 

Committee  to  furnish  to  the  President  and  Directors  of  the 
Literary  fund  the  information  for  which  they  ask  in  their  adver- 
tisement published  in  the  Richmond  Enquirer. 

Mr.  Gilbert  Morgan  shall  for  the  ensuing  year  teach  the 
Mathematical  classes  in  College,  and  shall  also  teach  such  other 
branches  of  science  as  may  be  assigned  him  by  the  President  of 
College  and  the  Committee  for  instructors.  Mr.  Jacob  T.  B„ 
Skillman  for  the  ensuing  year  to  teach  the  Languages  in  College 
together  with  such  other  branches  of  science  as  may  in  like 
manner  be  assigned  to  him. 

[To  the  President  and  Directors  of  the  Literary  Fund — Nov. 
25,  1821 : 

The  College  building  is  an  old  brick  house  containing  twelve 
rooms, — we  have  also  a  house  for  the  library,  philosophical  and 
chemical  apparatus,  a  President's  and  steward's  establishment, 
a  house  designed  for  the  assembling  of  the  students  on  public 
occasions,  and  a  small  brick  house  intended  for  the  residence  of  a 
professor. 

our  enemies,  and  is  not  necessary.     The  University  is  advanced  to  that 
point,    from   which   it   must   and   will    carry   itself   through.' 

Cabell  to  Jefferson,   [During  a  session  of  the  Legislature]   Feb  II,   1823, 
[p.  277]— 
'The  Hampden  Sidney  interest  was  opposed  to  us.     The  influence  of 
William  and  Mary,  as  usual,  was  adverse'  [regarding  a  loan  for  erecting 
the  buildings  of  the  University] 

Jefferson  to  Cabell,   Monticello,  Dec  22,   1824   [p.  322]  — 

'Divide  the  state  into  college  districts  of  about  eighty  miles  square 
each  *  *  *  The  districts  might  be  so  laid  off  that  the  principal 
towns  and  the  academies  now  existing,  might  form  convenient  sites 
for  their  colleges,  as  for  example,  Williamsburg,  Richmond,  Fredericks- 
burg, Hampden  Sidney,  Lynchburg,  or  Lexington,  Staunton,  Winches- 
ter &c.  *  *  You  will  remember,  that  of  the  three  bills  I  originally 
gave  you,  one  was  for  these  district  colleges,  and  going  into  the  neces- 
sary details.' 

Jefferson  to  Cabell,  Mbnticello,  Jan.  22,   1825.    [p.  335] — 

T  have  not  meddled  with  the  Lexington  academy,  because  it  is  a 
mere  private  institution,  founded  by  Gen.  Washington  with  property 
made  completely  his  own.  Its  case  is  therefore  totally  different  from  the 
public  institution  of  William  &  Mary.  Foreseeing  that  Hampden  Sidney 
will  not  consent  to  accept  of  the  new  character  proposed  for  her,  I  have 
provided  for  a  substitute  in  Nottoway,  as  more  equally  distant  from  the 
Colleges  of  Richmond  and  Lynchburg,  and  reasonably  so  from  Hamp- 
den Sidney.' 

[See  Bill,  which  was  never  brought  up,  Appendix,  p.  499.] 

Cabell  to  Jefferson,  Richmond,  Feb   10,   1826.    [p.  370-371] 

M  would  fix  in  the  bill  the  maximum  appropriation  to  each  and  all  the 


90       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

The  property  held  by  the  College  consists  of  120  acres  of 
land  on  which  the  College  stands,  and  a  small  tract  in  the  vicinity 
which  rents  for  $120 — We  have  twenty  eight  shares  in  the  Bank 
of  the  U.  States  and  48  in  the  Bank  of  Virginia.  There  are  a 
few  more  shares  standing  in  the  name  of  the  Trustees,  but  they 
have  been  given  for  special  and  not  the  general  purposes  of 
College  [for  the  theological  school].  The  income  of  the  College 
exclusive  of  tuition  for  the  year  1820  was  $246,  for  the  year 
182 1  it  is  $308.  Two  tracts  of  escheated  land  given  by  the  Com- 
monwealth in  1784  and  1794  were  sold  in  the  year  1807  (except 
a  small  tract  near  the  College)    for  $4000  |   $6159,  vested  in 

2159  ) 
bank  stock.     [Cf.  Minutes,  Jan  15,  1807]     A  lottery  authorized 
was  very  little  profitable. 

During  the  last  year  we  have  received  by  private  donation 
$13,400  which  it  is  estimated  will  be  sufficient  to  erect  one  wing 
and  the  centre  building  of  the  College  contemplated  by  the 
Trustees,  who  have  accordingly  contracted  for  so  much  of  the 
work. 

From  papers  preserved  by  Richard  N.  V enable — not  a  copy.] 

colleges;  I  think  $1000  each,  or  $9000  to  all,  per  annum,  would  be 
enough.  This  would  give  two  salaries  of  $500  to  two  professors ;  these, 
with  the  fees,  would  be  competent,  I  should  suppose.  *  *  *  The  Col- 
lege of  Hampden  Sidney  might  apply  for  the  location  in  the  district  where 
it  is  situated.  Or,  perhaps  it  would  be  better  to  legislate  specially,  by 
separate  bill,  as  to  that  college,  giving  it  an  annuity  revocable  at  the  will 
of  the  Legislature,  and  leaving  its  Charter  as  it  is.  The  other  two  col- 
leges want  nothing.  I  think  we  ought  to  take  no  notice  of  them  in  our 
bill ;  and  their  open  avowal  not  to  come  under  the  control  of  the  State,  is 
a  sufficient  justification.  If  the  friends  of  Hampden  Sidney  should  be 
strong  enough  to  force  it  into  the  bill,  we  must  make  the  best  terms  we 
can.  I  would  wish  to  do  something  for  that  institution;  it  has  been  and 
will  be  useful;  and  is  supported  by  a  most  respectable  population.  But 
we  should  never  lose  sight  of  the  whole  State.' 

Editor's  Note.    [p.  236] 

'The  friends  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  may  also  learn,  from  this 
correspondence,  that  there  was  no  particular  desire  on  the  part  of  the 
Visitors  of  the  University  to  depress  that  institution.  They  did  not  deny 
its  former  usefulness  or  capacity  for  future  service.  Believing  that  a 
general  system  of  education  for  the  whole  State  should  embrace  primary 
schools,  colleges,  and  a  single  university;  and  thinking  it  but  just  that 
all  of  the  second  class  which  received  aid  from  the  State,  should,  like 
the  University,  come  under  State  control ;  when  the  condition  was 
rejected  they  acquiesced  in  an  arrangement  which  appears  to  be  better 
suited  to  our  peculiar  circumstances  and  which  has  certainly  succeeded 
beyond  all  prior  expectations — that  of  leaving  each  sect  to  establish  its 
own  college  and  academies,  and  using  the  funds  of  the  State  princi- 
pally for  the  maintenance  of  a  University  *  *  *  and  for  the  tuition 
of  the  poor.' 


William    S.   Morton. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  91 

1822.   Mar.  18.   Mr.  Lyle. 

Committee  appointed  to  inquire  what  accommodation  should 
be  made  for  the  Steward  by  way  of  enlarging  the  dining  room, 
reported  that  it  would  be  more  expedient  to  build  a  brick  house 
two  stories  high  60x22  feet  in  the  clear  for  a  kitchen  and  dining 
room.  Bank  stock  to  be  sold  for  the  purpose,  if  sufficient  dona- 
tions cannot  be  obtained. 

President  Cushing,  R.  N.  Venable,  and  W.  S.  Morton  a  com- 
mittee to  fix  on  the  site  of  the  new  College  building. 

1822.  Apr.  25.  William  M.  Watkins. 

Thomas  A.  Morton  authorised  to  sell  and  transfer  eighteen 
shares  of  the  stock  of  the  Bank  of  the  United  States  belonging 
to  the  College.     [Stock  in  Bank  of  Virginia  to  be  sold.   Apr.  24, 

1823.] 

Committee  to  inquire  into  the  expediency  of  changing  the  ses- 
sions and  vacations  of  Academy  and  College  into  three  instead 
of  two,  and  of  enlarging  the  studies  of  the  Academy  so  as  to 
lessen  those  of  College,  and  of  making  any  change  in  the  studies 
of  the  Classes  of  College  so  as  to  render  them  more  suitable  to 
the  capacities  of  the  students. 

Mr.  William  Blauvelt  elected  Tutor  of  Languages  in  the  place 
of  Mr.  Skillman  who  has  left  the  institution.1 

Committee  to  employ  teachers  to  make  no  contract  with  the 
President  and  Teachers  for  the  next  year,  for  any  payment  from 
the  funds,  until  debts  and  expenses  be  paid. 

1822.   Oct.  31.  Richard  N.  Venable. 

The  third  story  of  the  centre  building  of  the.  new  College  edi- 
fice to  be  appropriated  to  the  use  of  the  two  Societies  of  Col- 
lege (the  Union  and  the  Philanthropic),  to  be  laid  off  into  rooms 
and  finished  (under  the  control  of  the  Building  Committee)  as 
the  said  Societies  may  think  proper,  the  President  and  Trustees 
not  being  liable  for  a  greater  expense  than  they  are  subject  to 
under  their  agreement  with  the  contractors.  Rents  of  rooms  in 
the  new  College  building,  for  the  large  rooms  $36  and  for  the 
small  $24. 

Graduates  of  this  institution  or  of  any  other,  in  regular  stand- 
ing, who  rriay  resort  here  to  study  any  of  the  Learned  Profes- 
sions or  to  make  further  advancement  in  literature  or  science  to 

Gilbert  Morgan,  J.  T.  B.  Skillman,  and  Peter  McViccar,  appointed 
Tutors  from  1819  to  1821,  were  graduates  of  Union  College.  Gilbert 
Morgan  was  for  some  ten  years  President  of  the  Western  University  of 
Pennsylvania  at  Pittsburg  [1836-1845]. 

Mr.  Blauvelt  (a  graduate  of  Rutgers  College)  died  in  1888,  having 
been  pastor  and  pastor-emeritus  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Laming- 
ton,  New  Jersey  for  more  than  sixty  years. 


92       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

enjoy  such  advantages  as  the  institution  can  afford,  but  during 
their  residence  here  to  be  subject  to  all  the  laws  relating  to  order 
and  morality. 

Every  species  of  noise  or  disturbance  within  or  near  the  Col- 
lege buildings  and  all  games  or  sports  against  or  near  their  walls 
are  prohibited. 

No  student  to  enter  or  approach  the  Commons  Hall,  or  any 
of  the  Steward's  apartments,  before  the  usual  signal  for  meals  is 
given;  nor  shall  any  student  abuse  or  molest  any  servant  who 
shall  wait  on  the  table  in  the  hall. 

1823.    Sept.  26.    Colo.  C.  Carrington. 

Hereafter  there  shall  be  no  recess  from  studies  in  this  institu- 
tion at  Christmas  except  on  Christmas-day,  and  on  that  day  there 
shall  only  be  a  cessation  from  study,  but  no  relaxation  in  the 
other  discipline  of  College. 

Salaries  of  officers  after  Nov.  I,  1824 — Should  the  number  of 
students  be  100,  the  President  (who  is  also  Professor  of  Natural 
Philosophy  and  Chemistry)  to  receive  $1600;  the  two  College 
teachers  $900  each  and  one  half  board;  the  Grammar  teacher 
$600  and  board.  If  number  of  students  should  be  more  than  100,. 
one  fourth  the  surplus  to  be  divided  between  the  President  and 
the  two  College  teachers,  balance  to  be  at  the  disposal  of  the 
Board.  If  number  of  Students  less  than  100,  tuition  fees  to  be 
divided  in  the  proportion  of  the  above  salaries. 

1823.  Oct.  31.  William  Berkeley. 

Committee  to  rent  out  the  Tavern  and  other  tenements  be- 
longing to  the  College  at  the  place  called  French's  Old  Store, 
to  submit  a  plan  for  the  improvement  of  the  property.1 

Each  student  occupying  a  room  in  the  new  College  building 
to  pay  $12  for  the  two  sessions,  room  rent  and  servant's  hire. 

Committee  appointed  to  solicit  aid  to  this  institution  of  the 
Legislature. 

Faculty  to  have  the  power  of  requiring  three  recitations  a  day 
of  such  College  classes  as  they  may  think  proper. 

Another  teacher  to  be  employed,  'provided  the  present  Faculty 
appropriate  a  part  of  their  salaries  as  a  compensation  for  his; 
services.' 

1824.  July  2.   Colo.  Carrington. 

Building  Committee  to  settle  the  accounts  of  workmen  for 
work  done  on  the  new  College  building,  and  to  receive  the  work 
if  they  think  proper  [Messrs.  Phaup  and  Perry,  Contractors]. 

1French's  Store — French's  Old  Store — King's  Tavern — Kingsville.  In 
the  development  of  our  place  names,  how  fortunate  if  the  compound  in 
-ville  has  been  avoided. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  93 

John  H.  Rice  and  Henry  E.  Watkins  added  to  the  Committee 
to  secure  officers  of  College — such  characters  to  be  secured  as 
will  be  qualified  to  fill  the  office  of  Professors  should  the  Board 
at  their  general  meeting  in  September  next  appoint  Professors. 

1824.    Sept.  23-24.    Colo.  Carrington. 

Committee  to  sell  the  houses  called  French's  Old  Store,  and 
land  adjacent  not  to  exceed  150  acres. 

Report  of  Committee  to  revise  and  arrange  the  course  of 
studies : — 

Academy  attached  to  College 

Adam's  Latin  Grammar ;  Corderius  ;  Epitome  Historiae  Sacrae ; 
Latin  Tutor;  Caesar's  Commentaries;  Virgil  and  Latin  Prosody; 
Sallust;  Cicero's  Orations. 

Hackenberg's  Greek  Grammar,  by  Goodrich ;  Greek  Delectus ; 
Jacob's  Greek  Reader;  Dalzel's  Collectanea  Graeca  Minora,  and 
Greek  Prosody ;  Neilson's  Greek  Exercises,  and  Knappius'  Greek 
Testament. 

Lempriere's  Classical  Dictionary,  Tooke's  Pantheon,  and 
Adam's  Roman  Antiquities  to  be  consulted  and  studied  so  that 
the  student  may  explain  all  Classic  allusions. 

Murray's  English  Grammar,  Webber's  Arithmetic,  Elements 
of  Geography  and  Ancient  History. 

The  Students  are  to  perform  such  exercises  in  elocution  and 
composition  as  the  Preceptor  may  direct. 

College. 

Each  class  has  two  studies  and  a  daily  recitation  in  each  study, 
except  the  Senior  Class. 

Fresh.  Class — Winter  Session 

1.  Cambridge  Course  of  Mathematics, — Lacroix's  Arithmetic, 

Euler's   Algebra,   Legendre's   Geometry   commenced. 

2.  Cicero's  orations  reviewed,  Livy,  Graeca  Majora  Vol.  1st, — 
the  historians  Herodotus  and  Xenophon.  Composition  and  Dec- 
lamation. 

Summer  Session. 

1.  Legendre's  Geometry  completed;  Graeca  Majora,  2nd  vol. 
— Homer  and  the  Minor  Poets;  Horace's  Odes,  and  Greek  and 
Latin  Prosody. 

2.  English  Grammar,  Murray's  8  vo.  vol ;  Blair's  Lectures  on 
Rhetoric ;  and  Exercises  in  elocution.  Latin  and  Greek  Exer- 
cises, and  Roman  Antiquities  continued  through  the  year. 


94       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Sophomore  Class — Winter  Session. 

i.  Hedge's  Logic,  Morses's  Geography  8vo.  Vol.,  Ty tier's 
Elements  of  History  and  Chronology. 

2.  Graeca  Majora, — Thucidydes,  Lysias,  Isocrates,  and  Demos- 
thenes; Tacitus.     Declamation  and  Composition. 

Summer  Session. 

1.  Lacroix's  Algebra;  Analytical  Geometry  commenced;  Plane 
and  Spherical  Trigonometry  and  Algebra  applied  to  Geometry. 

2.  Excerpta  Latina — Quinctilian  and  Cicero,  Graeca  Majora — 
Dionysius,  Longinus,  and  Aristotle. 

Translations  from  English  into  Latin  and  Greek  through  the 
year. 

Declamation;  compositions  every  four  weeks  through  the  year. 

Junior  Class — Winter  Session. 

1.  Chemistry  with  experiments  and  illustrations.  Graeca 
Majora — Aristotle,  Sophocles,  and  Euripides ;  Horace. 

2.  Algebra  applied  to  Conic  Sections;  Topography,  or  the  ap- 
plication of  Geometry  to  Projections;  Dialling;  Mensuration  of 
Heights  and  Distances ;  Navigation ;  Nautical  Astronomy ;  Sur- 
veying; Levelling  &c;  Fluxions. 

Composition  and  Declamation. 
Summer  Session. 

i.  Enfield's  Natural  Philosophy — Mechanics;  Pneumatics; 
Hydrostatics ;  Magnetism ;  Electricity ;  and  Optics. 

2.  Cicero's  Philosophical  Works;  Graeca  Majora — Xenophon's 
Memorabilia,  Plato  and  Aristotle.  Compositions  in  Latin  and 
Greek. 

Declamation;  Composition  in  English  every  three  weeks 
through  the  year. 

Senior  Class — Winter  Session. 

i.  Stewart's  Philosophy  of  the  Mind,  1st  Vol.,  Campbell's 
Philosophy  of  Rhetoric ;  Paley's  Moral  and  Political  Philosophy ; 
Astronomy. 

2.  Reviews — Mathematics  and  the  Latin  and  Greek  Classics. 

Summer  Session. 

i.  Stewart's  Philosophy  of  the  Mind,  2nd  Vol.;  Chemistry 
and  its  applications ;  Mineralogy ;  Geology ;  Laws  of  Nature  and 
Nations,  by  Vattel. 

2.  Reviews — Natural    Philosophy    and    Astronomy.      Paley's 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  95 

Evidences  once  a  week  through  the  year.  Lectures  are  given 
on  the  most  important  subjects  of  the  course. 

Dissertations  every  two  weeks;  orations  every  four  weeks; 
and  forensics  every  eight  weeks  through  the  year. 

The  members  of  each  class  are  required  to  declaim  in  public 
once  a  month ;  the  Senior  Class  to  pronounce  orations  of  their 
own  composition. 

Private  instruction  will  be  given  in  the  Oriental  and  Modern 
Languages.1 

The  Rev.  James  Marsh  was  elected  the  Professor  of  Lan- 
guages and  Belles  Letters.2 

W.  H.  Cabell,  Henry  E.  Watkins,  and  Thomas  Miller  a  Com- 
mittee to  solicit  aid,  to  this  institution,  of  the  Legislature. 

1824.   Dec.  20.   Dr.  Rice. 

Respectful  petition  of  the  Students  regarding  a  Christmas 
recess.  Faculty  authorised  to  grant  a  recess  not  exceeding  ten 
days — 'in  the  opinion  of  the  Board  the  custom  of  Virginia  makes 
it  proper  that  students  should  have  some  short  recess  at  Christ- 
mas.' 

1History,  among  other  things,  is  a  good  deal  vanity.  Granted  its  im- 
portance, a  history  of  a  College  might  well  be  a  sort  of  Browning  affair 
— a  series  of  narratives  (or  calendars)  from  different  points  of  view. 
For  instance,  that  of  the  Trustees,  the  Treasurer,  the  Faculty,  the  Lit- 
erary Societies,  the  Alumni  as  on  record  in  their  reminiscences.  For 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  when  the  turn  of  the  Literary  Societies  came 
to  speak  through  their  records,  a  very  remarkable  showing  would  be 
made,  and  emphatically  during  the  period  when  the  curriculum  given 
above  was  in  force.  The  vigorous  English  of  the  Society  records  for 
that  period  is  a  matter  of  wonder  to  the  reader,  grown  accustomed  to 
the  species  of  shabby  shorthand  which  has  been  waxing  as  a  habit  ever 
since  1840 — not  only  in  these  records.  What  was  it  that  brought  about 
the  change?  The  Mexican  war?  The  railroads?  The  Associated 
Press?  Nobody  can  say.  Whatever  the  reason,  it  is  a  fact  that  when 
College  boys  were  grilled  more  or  less  by  the  Schoolman's  recipe  the 
results  intellectually  were  nothing  despicable. 

2Dr.  Rice,  pastor  of  a  church  in  Richmond  for  ten  years  before  return- 
ing to  Hampden  Sidney  in  1823,  was  instrumental  in  furthering  the  for- 
tunes of  a  good  many  New  Englanders  in  the  South.  One  of  his  ser- 
vants in  Richmond  got  into  the  habit  of  thinking  that  any  strange  looking 
man  who  came  to  the  door  was  possibly  a  New  Englander.  Dr.  Rice 
introduced  both  President  Cushing  and  Professor  Marsh  to  Hampden 
Sidney.  Marsh  said  of  Dr.  Rice  in  1823,  "taking  him  all  in  all  I  value 
his  character  more  than  that  of  any  man  I  have  yet  known,  decidedly." 
James  Marsh  came  first  to  Hampden  Sidney  in  the  winter  of  1823.  He 
stayed  a  few  months,  and  returned  in  December.  He  was  an  all  round 
linguist,  and  his  services  were  retained  both  by  the  College  and  the 
Theological  School.  While  at  Hampden  Sidney  he  began  his  transla- 
tion of  Herder's  Spirit  of  Hebrew  Poetry,  and  he  was  active  in  the 
organization  of  the  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society.  See,  Memoir  by 
J.  Torrey  [Prefixed  to  Remains]  Boston,  1843,  pp.  56-76. 


96       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1825.   Apr.  29.   William  Berkeley. 

The  Board  to  wear  crape  for  one  month — 'fully  sensible  of  the 
public  services  and  private  virtues  of  the  late  Carter  Page  of 
Cumberland  County  and  duly  appreciating  the  loss  which  this 
Institution  has  sustained  in  the  death  of  so  valuable  a  member 
of  their  body.'1 


1825.   Sept.  28-29-30.   Col.  Carrington. 

Degree  of  LL.D.  conferred  upon  Benjamin  Watkins  Leigh, 
Esqr.  of  Richmond — 'evidence  of  high  consideration  for  his 
character  and  attainments.' 

Committee  reported  that  they  had  sold  a  part  of  the  College 
lands  called  French's  Old  Store. 

Mr.  Peter  McViccar  elected  Professor  of  Mathematics. 

Hereafter  an  examination  of  the  Students  of  the  College  to 
be  on  the  2ist,  226.,  and  23d  of  December,  on  the  previous  studies 
of  that  session. 

Subscriptions  to  be  solicited  to  be  applied  to  the  erection  of 
another  wing  to  the  College  edifice. 


1826.  July  1.   Col.  Carrington. 

No  student  to  be  required  to  board  in  Commons.  Committee 
authorized  to  rent  out  the  present  Commons  establishment  and 
the  old  Steward's  establishment. 

No  student  permitted  to  board  at  any  tavern,  or  at  any  house 
not  licensed  by  the  Board  of  Trustees;  license  to  be  annually 
renewed,  and  such  boarding  houses  to  be  under  the  control  of 
the  College  authorities.  Price  nowhere  to  exceed  $9  per  month. 
In  renting  the  present  Steward's  establishment  the  two  east  rooms 
and  the  south  room  in  the  second  story  to  be  reserved  for  the  use 
of  officers.  Tenant  to  board  two  officers  and  two  servants  as 
heretofore. 


1826.   Sept.  29.  James  Jones. 

Treasurer's  report — balance  due  him  seventeen  pounds  two 
shillings  and  one  half  penny. 

Committee  of  repairs  to  make  such  repairs  in  the  old  College 
building  as  they  may  think  expedient. 

*In  the  Revolutionary  war  Major  Carter  Page  had  been  a  member 
of  Lafayette's  staff.     He  was  President  Cushing's  father  in  law. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  97 

Mr.  James  Marsh  tendered  his  resignation  as  Professor  of 
Languages.1 

Six  hundred  dollars  appropriated  to  the  Faculty  as  a  salary 
in  addition  to  the  tuition  fees,  to  be  distributed  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  the  money  derived  from  that  source. 

1826.  Oct.  12.    Dr.  Rice. 

Committee  to  sell  four  or  six  acres  of  the  land  given  to  the 
College  by  Martin  Saylors,  to  any  officer  of  College  for  a  house- 
lot  upon  terms  and  conditions  to  be  approved. 

Gait  Bequest — The  late  William  Gait  of  Richmond  hath  be- 
queathed, by  his  last  will  and  testament  thirty  shares  in  the 
[Farmer's]  Bank  of  Virginia  to  the  Trustees  of  Hampden  Syd- 
ney College  in  trust  for  the  benefit  of  the  Theological  Seminary 
under  the  care  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover :  Resolved  by  this 
Board  that  they  are  perfectly  willing  that  executors  of  the  late 
William  Gait  should  convey  the  same  to  James  Caskie  or  to  any 
other  person  or  persons  whom  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover  may 
elect  to  receive  them.2 

1827.  Apr.  25.    Richard  N.  Venable. 

J.,  of  Nelson  County,  having  been  disgracefully  dismissed 
by  the  Faculty  from  the  institution  for  firing  pistols  within  the 
College  buildings  (during  an  examination),  neglect  of  studies, 
insolence  to  an  officer,  going  to  the  shops  and  trading  on  Sunday, 
profane  swearing,  locking  a  recitation-room  door  with  a  class 
in  the  room,  and  general  disorder  and  irregularity,  and  having 
refused  to  leave  College  at  the  time  specified  by  the  Faculty — 
resolved,  that  the  said  J.  be  expelled. 

1827.   Sept.  25-26-27.  Col.  Carrington— Dr.  Rice. 

Committee  which  made  the  loan  to  the  Upper  Appomattox 
Company  instructed  to  require  a  sufficient  security. 

^'From  first  to  last  Mr.  Marsh  was  connected  with  Hampden  Sidney 
College  about  three  years,  a  time  hardly  sufficient  to  enable  him  fully  to 
realize  any  of  his  plans.  But  when  he  was  called,  as  he  soon  was,  into 
another  field,  he  left  behind  him  an  impression  of  his  competency  to 
fulfil  the  highest  expectations  of  his  friends ;  and  during  that  short 
period  many  young  minds  took  from  him  a  direction  which  decided 
their  character  for  life,  as  was  long  afterwards,  in  several  cases,  grate- 
fully acknowledged.  In  October,  1826,  Mr.  Marsh  was  appointed  Presi- 
dent of  the  University  in  his  native  State  [Vermont]"  J.  Torrey, 
Memoir  &c  p.  76. 

"William  Gait  was  the  uncle  of  John  Allan,  adoptive  father  of  Edgar 
Poe.  'Mr.  Gait  was  one  of  the  wealthiest  men  in  the  State.'  cf.  Life  and 
Letters  of  Edgar  Allan  Poe,  By  James  A.  Harrison,  New  York,  1902, 
I,   16. 


98       CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Mr.  William  N.  Page  was  appointed  Professor  of  the  Latin 
Language  and  Roman  Literature. 

Mr.  Hugh  A.  Garland  was  appointed  Professor  of  the  Greek 
Language  and  Greek  Literature.1 

William  S.  Morton  appointed  Clerk  to  the  Board  of  Trustees 
of  Hampden  Sydney  College,  to  continue  in  office  during  the. 
pleasure  of  the  Board,  at  an  annual  Salary  not  exceeding  thirty 
dollars. 

Committee  to  draft  a  memorial  setting  forth  the  wants  of  this 
institution,  to  be  presented  to  the  Legislature  or  brought  before 
its  consideration  through  the  medium  of  the  Board,  of  Managers, 
of  the  Literary  Fund. 

1828.  June  7.   Richard  N.  Venable. 

t  Committee  to  take  into  consideration  the  expediency  of  estab- 
lishing a  wood-yard  at  College,  or  to  devise  some  means  by  which 
the  students  can  be  furnished  with  a  constant  supply  of  fuel  on 
reasonable  terms.2 

1828.    Sept.  26.   Richard  N.  Venable. 

Course  of  studies  revised,  e.  g.  Lacroix's  Algebra  transferred 
from  the  summer  to  the  winter  session  of  the  Sophomore  Class,, 
and  Graeca  Majora  stricken  out  of  the  course  of  studies ;  Natural 
Philosophy  commenced  in  the  winter  session  and  Astronomy  in 
the  Summer  session  of  the  Junior  year;  Say's  Political  Economy- 
introduced  in  the  Summer  Session  of  the  Senior  Class  in  the  place 
of  the  second  volume  of  Stewart's  Philosophy  of  the  Mind.  A 
Science  Course  of  Studies  for  three  years  for  such  students  as 
do  not.  study  the  ancient  languages.  On  motion,  resolved  that 
those  students  of  the  Junior  Class  who  wish  to  obtain  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  pronunciation  and  idioms  of  the  modern  languages 
may  be  permitted  to  omit  such  portions  of  the  Latin  and  Greek 
languages  of  that  class  as  the  Faculty  shall  think  proper,  except 
Horace  and  Sophocles. 

Mr.  Cushing  authorised  to  rent  a  house  for  Professor  Page,, 
price  not  to  exceed  $ioo. 

^ugh  A.  Garland,  of  the  Class  of  1825,  was  Clerk  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  during  the  administration  of  Van  Buren,  and  has  been 
anathematized  by  John  Quincy  Adams  for  doing  no  more  than  his 
duty  in  refusing  to  pass  upon  the  credentials  of  members  at  the  organi- 
zation of  a  House — December  1839.  See,  Shepard's  Martin  Van  Buren 
[American  Statesmen],  pp.  319-322. 

Garland's  Life  of  John  Randolph,  a  most  careful  work,  is  still  worth 
a  careful  reading. 

2After  a  century  and  a  third,  the  price  of  cord-wood  locally  is  $3  for 
oak,  and  $2^  for  pine — encouraging  to  those  who  may  not  be  absolute- 
conservationists.  Except  within  the  last  twenty  years  little  coal  has 
been  used. 


Jonathan  P.  Cushing. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.  99 

1828.  Oct.  31-Nov.  1.   Richard  N.  Venable. 

Two  hundred  acres  of  the  land  belonging  to  the  College  to  be 
sold,  adjoining  the  lands  heretofore  sold  to  George  King  and 
others. 

A  Committee  to  apply  to  the  General  Assembly  for  pecuniary 
aid  to  this  College. 

Resolved,  that  the  Rev.  Dr.  Rice,  President  Cushing,  and 
Richard  N.  Venable  be  a  committee  to  prepare  a  history  of  the 
College,  and  report  to  a  future  meeting  of  the  Board.1 

The  revision  of  the  laws  was  completed,  and  the  laws  as  re- 
vised were  ordered  to  be  printed. 

1829.  Apr.  21.   R.  N.  Venable. 

Authorization  of  transfer  of  funds  of  the  Presbytery  of  Han- 

xLike  movements  for  woman's  suffrage,  American  independence,  im- 
proved agriculture  or  anything  else,  the  idea  of  putting  together  a  his- 
tory of  Hampden  Sidney  College  goes  back  a  long  time.  In  1782  it  was 
proposed  to  enter  in  a  book  every  item  of  historical  importance  regard- 
ing the  institution.  This  book  was  seriously  begun,  given  over,  and  has 
disappeared,  all  but  a  few  pages.  Apparently  nothing  came  of  the  motion 
of  October,  1828.  A  few  years  later  Dr.  G.  W.  Dame,  a  nephew  of 
President  Cushing  and  at  the  time  a  Professor  in  the  College,  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  alumni  to  write  a  history  of  the  College.  He  went  indus- 
triously about  the  task,  talked  with  early  Trustees  and  pupils  of  the  first 
two  Presidents,  and  had  collected  much  material,  when  objection  was 
made  to  the  enterprise  on  the  ground  that  the  author  was  not  a  mem- 
ber of  any  church,  and  should  not  be  allowed  to  write  the  history  of 
a  Presbyterian  College.  Professor  Dame  replied  that  he  had  been  ap- 
pointed to  write  the  history  of  a  literary  institution  and  not  of  a  theologi- 
cal school,  for  if  Dr.  Smith  the  elder  spoke  truly  Hampden  Sidney  was 
in  no  sense  a  sectarian  institution — "but  as  Mr.  W.  (a  minister)  was  so 
much  opposed  to  my  writing  it — a  member  of  no  church  and  of  no 
church  predilections — I  would  not  touch  the  work  and  immediately  re- 
signed. I  gave  my  papers  to  some  one,  I  do  not  know  to  whom.  I  had  a 
catalogue  of  all  the  students  who  have  ever  been  there  and  gave  it  to  the 
Trustees,  but  I  understand  that  was  lost  by  the  Secretary  whose  duty  it 
was  to  take  care  of  it."  The  fate  of  these  papers  shows  how  effective  a 
little  spleen  may  be,  working  together  with  a  little  negligence.  On  the 
historical  side  the  College  has  lost  greatly  because  it  has  had  no  definite 
repository,  well  administered,  until  within  very  recent  years. 

About  1850  Dr.  Foote  published  his  extraordinary  volumes,  from 
which  a  very  fair  history  of  the  first  fifty  years  of  the  College  may  be 
compiled.  Every  writer  since  Dr.  Foote  has  drawn  largely  upon  his 
narrative— Charles  Martin  in  1859,  (Magazine)  ;  Col.  Fitzgerald  in  1871 ; 
Reid  Mcllwaine  in  1888  (Appendix,  Thomas  Jefferson  and  the  Univer- 
sity of  Virginia)  ;  Dr.  Richard  Mcllwaine  in  numerous  addresses  and 
circulars;  and  even  the  late  Dr.  Henneman.  Dr.  Henneman,  however, 
did  a  vast  amount  of  original  research  into  the  history  of  the  College' 
some  of  which  was  published;  if  he  had  remained  in  Virginia  (which 
as  a  State  owes  him  much)  the  history  of  the  College  would  almost 
certainly  have  been  recorded  by  him  in  the  most  thorough-going  fashion 

Mr.  Gngsby's  Centennial  Address  of  1876  (MS)  contains  a  great  deal 
of  first  hand  information. 


ioo  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

over  (including  thirty  shares  bank  stock,  bequest  of  William 
Gait),  held  in  trust  by  the  Board  for  the  support  of  a  Theologicaf 
Professorship,  to  the  Trustees  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States  of  America — with 
proviso  fixing  liabilities  for  the  amount  of  the  Gait  bequest, 
should  the  executors  or  residuary  legatees  commence  process 
at  law. 

Committee  to  make  arrangements  for  soliciting  aid  to  the  Col- 
lege by  way  of  subscriptions.  [An  address  to  the  public  ordered, 
June  13,  1829]. 

1829.  Sept.  23-24.  Colo.  Carrington. 

A  letter  received  from  William  N.  Page,  tendering  a  resigna- 
tion of  his  Professorship  of  the  Latin  Language  and  Roman 
Literature. 

The  Treasurer  authorized  to  pay  the  sum  of  eighteen  hundred 
dollars,  in  lieu  of  the  six  hundred  dollars  heretofore  appropriated 
for  the  annual  support  of  the  officers  of  College. 

1830.  Feb.  16.   Colo.  Carrington. 

There  being  still  a  deficiency  of  seven  or  eight  thousand  dol- 
lars proposed  to  be  raised  by  subscription,  President  Cushing 
is  requested  to   continue  his  exertions  to  obtain  subscriptions. 

Richard  N.  Venable  and  Henry  N.  Watkins  a  committee  to 
inquire  into  and  report  to  the  next  meeting  the  practicability  of 
purchasing  the  buildings  of  the  Union  Theological  Seminary. 

1830.   Apr.  28.   Colo.  Carrington. 

Resolution  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Union  Theological 
Seminary,  signed  J.  H.  C.  Leach,  Secretary: — The  Board  would 
feel  itself  bound  to  submit  such  a  proposition  [offer  to  purchase 
the  site  and  buildings  of  the  Seminary]  to  the  Synods  of  Virginia 
and  North  Carolina.  'And  they  are  so  thoroughly  convinced  that 
the  ultimate  decision  of  the  question  involved  against  the  pro- 
posed measure  as  injurious  to  the  welfare  of  the  Seminary,  and 
a  violation  of  good  faith  to  its  benefactors,  that  they  deem  it 
not  expedient  to  regard  it  as  a  subject  of  future  consideration/1 

1These  Minutes  regarding  a  purchase  of  the  Theological  Seminary's 
plant  are  rather  unexpected :  Dr.  Rice,  Dean  of  the  Seminary,  was  will- 
ing to  act  as  one  of  the  Committee  of  the  Trustees  of  the  College  to  sub- 
mit the  proposition.  In  1827  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover,  which  had 
again  become  sponsor  for  the  Seminary,  made  over  the  school  to  the  two 
Synods  (of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina).  Therefore  in  1830  the  insti- 
tution was  the  Union  Seminary.  Much  of  the  money  which  had  set  it 
going  had  been  raised  in  Virginia,  especially  Southside  Virginia ;  much 
of  it  had  come  from  the  North.  The  group  of  buildings  thus  secured 
was  imposing  enough — a  great  dormitory,  chapel,  and  library  building 
flanked  by  two  commodious  residences  for  professors.  If  there  was 
any  opportunity,  it  must  have  seemed  an  excellent  one  to  the  Trustees  of 
the  College,  who  at  the  time  had  funds  in  hand. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         101 

1830.    May  31-June  1.    Colo.  Camngton. 

The  subscription  paper  circulated  for  the  benefit  of  the  Col- 
lege having  been  returned,  and  it  appearing  that  the  sum  of 
thirty  thousand  dollars  has  been  subscribed,  ordered,  that  the 
Clerk  give  notice  through  the  newspapers  of  that  fact.  Com- 
mittee to  superintend  the  collection  of  the  subscriptions. 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  officers  of  the  College,  except  the 
President,  to  remain  in  the  College  edifice  during  the  hours  of 
study;  at  night  one  of  the  professors  and  the  tutor  or  tutors  shall 
always  remain. 

$25,000  of  the  funds  of  the  College  to  be  set  apart  as  a  per- 
manent fund. 

President  Cushing,  R.  N.  Venable,  and  James  Madison  a  Com- 
mittee to  contract  for  building  the  west  wing  of  the  College  edi- 
fice. 

Price  of  board  to  be  eight  dollars  and  the  steward  to  be  charged 
no  rent. 


1830.   Sept.  23-24.   Col.  Carrington. 

Col.  Armistead  Burwell  having  sent  in  his  resignation  of  the 
office  of  Steward  of  this  College,  the  Board  proceeded  to  the  elec- 
tion of  a  Steward,  and  the  members  having  prepared  their  ballots, 
it  appeared  that  John  J.  Flournoy  had  a  majority  of  votes. 

The  Steward  to  receive  the  deposit  money  for  fuel,  and  to  re- 
ceive and  distribute  the  wood  which  may  have  been  contracted 
for  by  the  faculty ;  and  on  all  occasions,  when  the  Trustees  meet 
to  attend  to  the  interests  of  the  College,  to  provide  accommoda- 
tion for  them  and  for  their  horses,  without  charge.  The  Col- 
lege bell  to  be  removed  to  a  suitable  place  in  or  near  the 
Steward's  yard,  and  to  be  put  under  his  protection. 

A  letter  received  from  Mr.  Hugh  A.  Garland  resigning  the 
Professorship  of  the  Greek  Language  and  Literature. 

The  Professors  of  Mathematics  and  Languages  to  have  their 
studies  in  the  College  buildings,  and  to  be  in  their  studies  during 
all  the  hours  of  study,  and  to  preserve  order  in  and  about  the 
College.  Each  officer  of  the  institution,  except  the  President, 
on  every  day  or  night  to  visit  all  student's  rooms,  and  to  see  that 
the  students  are  in  their  respective  places  and  attending  to  their 
proper  duties. 

Col.  Madison,  Richard  N.  Venable,  and  President  Cushing  to 
contract  for  a  suitable  house  &c  for  the  President,  total  cost 
with  the  enclosure,  not  to  exceed  four  or  five  thousand  dollars — 
'but  the  contractor  is  to  have  the  privilege  of  using,  in  building 


102      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

such  new  houses,  such  part  of  the  materials  of  the  old  College1 
as  the  said  Committee  may  think  proper.' 

Sum  set  apart  for  permanent  fund  reduced  to  $20,000. 

The  Rev.  Stephen  Taylor  of  Richmond  elected  Professor  of 
Languages,  the  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Upham  of  Bowdoin  College, 
alternate.     [Both  declined:  Minute  of  Apr.  27,  1 831]. 

John  Burwell  and  David  Comfort  appointed  Tutors. 

$1800  over  and  above  tuition  fees  appropriated  as  compen- 
sation to  the  President,  Professors,  and  Tutors  for  the  ensuing 
year. 

President  Cushing  credited  with  the  amount  of  his  own  sub- 
scription, 'in  consideration  of  great  and  valuable  services  in  ob- 
taining subscriptions  for  the  College.' 

President  Cushing,  William  M.  Thornton,  and  William  M. 
Atkinson  a  Committee  to  apply  to  the  Legislature  for  an  appro- 
priation from  the  Literary  Fund,  in  aid  of  the  funds  of  this 
College. 

[The  petition  of  Dec.  20,  1830  is  signed  by  J.  P.  Cushing,  Wil- 
liam M.  Thornton  and  W.  M.  Atkinson,  a  committee  of  the 
trustees,  and  requests  a  grant  of  aid  by  the  State  on  account  of 
the  lack  of  support  arising  from  the  depression  in  the  prices  of 
farm  products.  Ten  years  before  an  attempt  had  been  made  to 
raise  a  sufficient  fund  by  subscription  to  erect  a  new  building, 
but  only  a  part  of  the  plan  was  completed.  In  the  last  eighteen 
months,  however,  enough  money  had  been  raised  in  the  south- 
eastern part  of  the  State  to  enable  the  trustees  to  finish  the 
building,  and  also  to  establish  a  small  endowment.  Means  were 
needed  at  the  time  to  increase  the  accommodations  for  the  faculty, 
to  enlarge  the  library  and  the  philosophical  apparatus,  so  that 
the  college  might  be  kept  up-to-date.  The  trustees  therefore 
asked  for  an  appropriation  from  the  literary  fund. 

Abstract  by  Dr.  Eckenrode,  State  Archivist.] 

1831.    Apr.  27.    Mr.  Berkeley. 

Conveyance  to  John  H.  Rice  and  others  of  all  right  and  title 
which  the  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sydney  College  may  have  to 

xIn  the  American  Almanac  for  1834  the  statement  is  made  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  that  it  has  two  buildings,  both  of  brick,  the  one 
190  feet  by  50  etc.,  and  the  other  45x40  of  3  stories  occupied  by  the 
academy  or  preparatory  school  attached  to  the  College.  The  building 
45x40  was  the  Old  College.  The  statement  in  the  Almanac  must  be 
referred  to  the  year  1833  or  possibly  1832.  The  new  President's  house 
was  finished  in  1833,  and  no  doubt  that  year,  or  1832,  was  the  last  of 
the  Old  College. 


Henry   E.    Watkins. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         103 

four  and  three  eighths  acres  of  land  conveyed  to  them  by  a  deed 
from  Martin  Saylors,  Dec.  30,  1823. 

Committee  to  confer  with  Mr.  Binford  relative  to  opening  a 
road  from  the  Lynchburg  road  to  H.  S.  College.1 

Mr.  Albert  L.  Holladay  unanimously  elected  Professor  of 
Languages. 

1831.    May  5.    Mr.  Berkeley. 

Committee  to  contract  for  erecting  a  house  for  the  President, 
have  contracted  with  David  Bruce  and  Reuben  Perry. 

1831.   July  6.   Col.  Carrington. 

A  letter  was  read  from  President  Cushing,  containing  his  resig- 
nation of  the  office  of  President.  Resignation  accepted.  A  com- 
mittee to  ascertain  whether  Mr.  Cushing  will  not  remain  for  a 
year  from  October  next.  In  a  conference  Mr.  Cushing  stated  that 
he  had  made  communications  which  might  produce  incompatible 
engagements.2 

Committee  for  building  the  new  wing  to  contract  for  a  belfry. 

1831.    Sept.   28-30.     ['At  the   Philosophical   Room'].     Major 
James  Morton — Mr.  Berkeley. 

Resolutions  on  the  death  of  Dr.  Rice. 

Committee  to  sell  land  near  King's  Tavern. 

Salary  appropriation:  $1800  of  which  the  President  to  re- 
ceive 16-40,  each  of  the  Professors  9-40;  6-40  at  the  disposal  of 
the  Committee  to  employ  Tutors.  President,  Professors,  and 
Tutors  to  receive  the  whole  of  the  tuition  fees,  to  be  divided  in 
the  same  manner. 

Order  accepting  the  resignation  of  President  Cushing  re- 
scinded.    President  Cushing  withdrew  his  resignation  and  pre- 

*Mr.  Binford  lived  within  sight  of  the  College  at  "Cherry  Hill,"  part 
of  the  old  Johnston  estate,  where  it  has  been  said  that  Gen.  Joseph  E. 
Johnston  was  born.  In  1831  the  Lynchburg  road  from  the  Court  House 
bore  to  the  northwest  at  Morton's  Store  (now  "Wayside")  passing  very 
near  the  house  at  "Cherry  Hill,"  and  continuing  across  Buffalo  Creek. 
At  Morton's  Store  the  Charlotte  road,  or  road  to  the  College,  turned 
to  the  left,  following  a  course  south  of  the  present  road  across  the 
bog  now  the  baseball  field.  For  many  years  the  Court  House  was  the 
chief  objective  near  the  College.  Not  until  about  1850  were  the  roads 
changed  to  their  present  bearing — by  making  the  Lynchburg  road  and  the 
Charlotte  road  the  same  to  a  point  on  the  College  lands  some  distance 
south  of  "Cherry  Hill,"  where  the  Lynchburg  road  was  turned  sharply 
to  the  northwest,  and  the  Charlotte  road  kept  on,  curving  to  the  north 
instead  of  to  the  south  as  before. 

'"Mr.  Cushing  of  Hampden  Sidney  was  elected  professor  of  Chemistry 
and  natural  philosophy" — Richmond  Enquirer,  July  12,  1831 — account  of 
commencement  exercises  at  William  and  Mary  College,  July  4. 


104      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

sented  a  letter  resigning  the  office  of  President,  to  take  effect 
Oct.  i,  1832. 

Committee  to  give  Mr.  E.  Root,  late  an  officer  in  this  institu- 
tion,1 such  a  certificate  of  his  qualifications  as  they  may  think 
proper. 

1832.  Apr.  25.   Col.  Carrington. 

Resignation  of  John  J.  Flournoy,  as  Steward  of  College,  ac- 
cepted. 

The  Board  proceeded  to  the  election  of  a  President ;  whereupon 
Jonathan  P.  Cushing,  Esqr.,  was  elected.  Committee  after  con- 
ference with  Mr.  Cushing  reported  that  he  had  accepted  the 
appointment. 

The  Clerk  required  to  advertise  the  annual  and  semi-annual 
meetings  of  the  Board  in  due  time. 

1832.    July   17.    Col.   Carrington. 

Richard  N.  Venable  to  represent  the  Board  in  the  next  election 
of  Trustees  for  the  Upper  Appomattox  Company. 

For  the  ensuing  year  the  Steward  to  pay  $200  rent  for  the 
establishment. 

Tutor  or  Tutors  required  to  eat  in  the  dining-hall  with  the 
students.     [Rescinded,  Sept.  28,   1832.] 

1832.  Sept.  28.    Col.  Carrington. 

Treasurer's  bond  fixed  at  $20,000. 

Thomas  Vernon  elected  Steward  from  Oct.  1.  Salary  appro- 
priation: $1200  from  the  funds  and  tuition  fees. 

A  memorial  to  be  addressed  to  the  Legislature  of  Virginia  at 
the  next  session  of  that  body,  asking  aid  for  Hampden  Sidney 
College. 

1833.  Apr.  24.   Colo.  Madison. 

Committee  to  receive  deeds  from  the  representatives  of  the  late 
John  H.  Rice  and  from  the  Session  of  the  Church  near  the  Col- 
lege, for  two  small  lots  of  land  within  the  enclosure  surrounding 
the  President's  house. 

*Mr.  Root  of  New  York  was  a  graduate  of  Williams  College,  182 1.  He 
was  one  of  the  Charter  trustees  of  the  University  of  Wisconsin  and  the 
first  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  of  that  State.  He  died  in 
1887,  Rector  of  Trinity  Church,  St.  Augustine,  Florida. 

Mr.  Root  established  a  girls'  school  at  Prince  Edward  Court  House, 
which  was  celebrated  in  its  time  in  Virginia.  This  school  contributed 
much,  for  some  thirty  years,  to  the  discipline  and  the  gayety  of  the 
community.  Mr.  Root  sold  to  Daniel  Woods,  a  son  of  Dr.  Leonard 
Woods  of  Andover.     Professor  Branch  was  the  last  owner. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        105 

1833.  Sept.  27.   Colo.  Carrington. 

'Resolved,  that  when  an  applicant  for  admission  into  College 
shall  make  it  satisfactorily  appear  that  his  annual  resources  are 
inadequate  to  pay  the  price  allowed  the  Steward  for  board,  upon 
his  exhibiting  the  Steward's  refusal  to  board  him  for  such  a 
sum  as  he  can  afford  to  pay,  the  faculty  be  authorized  to  permit 
him  to  board  elsewhere.'  [No  Student  compelled  to  board  with 
the  Steward.    Sept  23,  1834] 

The  resignation  of  Mr.  Albert  Holladay  of  the  Professorship 
of  Languages  was  accepted. 

Professor  McViccar  acting  as  Curator,  [assigned  the  old  Presi- 
dent's house,  Nov.  19,  1833]. 

Penalties  required  of  the  contractors  for  building  the  west 
wing  ($50)  and  the  President's  house  ($175). 

Dr.  Socrates  Maupin  of  Albemarle  elected  Professor  of  Lan- 
guages for  one  year. 

1834.  Oct.  3.    Capt.  H.  A.  Watkins. 

'As  soon  as  practicable  the  students  of  this  institution  shall  be 
required  to  wear  a  college  uniform  of  the  following  description, 
viz :  a  coat,  pantaloons,  and  vest  of  mixed  gray  cloth  which  may 
be  domestic  or  foreign  manufacture ;  the  cost  of  the  whole  suit 
shall  not  exceed  twenty  four  dollars.'  Until  more  definite  action 
the  style  of  the  uniform  to  be  determined  by  the  faculty.1 

lrrhe  Laws  and  Regulations  of  1784  touch  upon  the  matter  of  a  uniform. 
In  1828  the  students  themselves  determined  to  wear  Virginia  cloth,  cut  and 
color  prescribed.  Just  before  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  there  was  a 
similar  movement.     [See  Magazine,  II,  41.] 

The  proceedings  of  1828  are  of  interest,  viz. — 

Hampden-Sydney  College,  August  25,  1828. 

In  this  time  of  universal  and  distressing  pecuniary  embarrassment, 
whatever  has  a  tendency  to  mitigate,  even  in  the  slightest  degree,  the  evils 
consequent  upon  this  state  of  things,  must  doubtless  be  considered  by  all 
lovers  of  their  country,  in  the  highest  degree  praiseworthy. 

From  this  consideration,  and  impressed  with  the  belief  that  the  present 
distressed  state  of  agriculture  and  commerce  in  Virginia  is  owing,  in  a 
great  measure,  to  the  unequal  operation  of  the  Tariff  Laws — and  at  the 
same  time,  convinced  that  much  may  be  done  by  way  of  alleviation,  should 
proper  measures  be  adopted,  the  Students  of  Hampden-Sydney  College 
assembled  in  their  Chapel  on  the  20th  ult.,  when,  upon  motion,  it  was  re- 
solved that  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  to  express  their  sentiments 
fully  upon  the  subject,  and  also  to  recommend  a  dress,  which  will,  in  some 
degree,  lessen  the  expense  of  their  collegiate  course.  Whereupon  Messrs. 
Landon  C.  Garland.  Nathan  J.  Barnett,  and  Samuel  J.  Rice,  were  ap- 
pointed, who  offered  the  following  Preamble  and  Resolutions,  [regarding 
the  Tariff — 'manufactures  not  merely  protected  in  their  infancy  but  given 
an  entire  monopoly' ;  'blighting  influence  more  deeply  felt  by  the  agricul- 
turalists, especially  those  of  the  South.'"] 

Our  lands  are  exhausted,  our  purses  emptied — and  we  are  left  no  other 
alternative  but  to  act  precisely  as  if  our  ports  were  blockaded  by  an  in- 


io6  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Mr.  McViccar's  resignation  of  the  Professorship  of  Mathe- 
matics was  handed  in  to  the  Board. 

A  Professorship  of  Geology  and  Mineralogy  (and  adjunct 
Professorship  of  Chemlistry  and  Natural  Philosophy)  to  be 
established.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  person  filling  this  pro- 
fessorship to  instruct  the  Classes  in  Mineralogy  and  Geology, 
and  under  the  direction  of  the  Professor  in  those  branches  to 
hear  the  text-books  in  Natural  Philosophy  and  Chemistry,  to 
keep  the  Philosophical  and  Chemical  apparatus  in  good  condition, 
to  make  all  necessary  preparations  for  suitable  illustrations  of 
those  sciences.  Compensation  6/  40  of  tuition  fees  and  of  annual 
appropriation ;  salary  to  be  advanced,  when  circumstances  permit, 
to  that  of  the  other  Professors. 

Dr.  Socrates  Maupin  elected  Professor  of  Mathematics,  one  year. 
Robert  G.  Branch         "  "         "  Languages,       " 

Geo.  W.  Dame  "  "        "  Geology  &c,     " 


vading  foe.  We  must  live  entirely  within  ourselves — purchase  nothing 
from  foreign  or  northern  markets  but  what  is  absolutely  necessary. 

Impresed  with  these  sentiments,  we  would  earnestly  recommend  to  our 
fellow-students  of  other  seminaries,  as  well  as  to  our  fellow-citizens  at 
large,  to  adopt  the  most  rigid  course  of  economy.  But  as  to  ourselves, 
be  it 

Resolved,  That  we  will  curtail  all  unnecessary  expense,  and  adopt  a 
uniform,  which  shall  secure  both  cheapness,  comfort,  and  neatness. 

2.  Resolved,  That,  in  order  to  effect  this,  the  dress  shall  consist  solely  of 
Virginia  cloth. 

3.  Resolved,  That  the  coat  be  of  a  dark  grey  cloth — standing  collar — 
pockets  upon  the  outside — single-breasted,  with  buttons  and  button-holes 
black.  Also  to  be  represented  upon  the  left  breast  with  black  cord,  the 
figure  of  the  celebrated  Theorem,  in  which  the  square  upon  the  Hypothe- 
nuse  of  any  right-angled  triangle,  is  shewn  to  be  equal  to  the  sum  of  the 
squares  upon  the  other  two  sides. — Black  cravats  or  stocks — vest  as  usual, 
without  regard  to  color  or  quality. — Pantaloons  cut  according  to  the 
fashion  of  the  day — provided  they  have  no  straps. — Shoes,  with  gaiters,  of 
a  black  color,  without  regard  to  quality. 

4.  Resolved,  That  no  other  dress  be  worn  either  on  public  occasions,  or 
in  vacations,  but  the  one  proposed. 

This  Preamble  and  these  Resolutions  were  unanimously  agreed  to,  and 
ordered  to  be  inserted  in  The  Richmond  Enquirer  and  Constitutional 
Whig  in  order  to  afford  to  those  who  intend  connecting  themselves  with 
the  Institution,  an  opportunity  of  supplying  themselves  with  the  uniform. 

[Richmond  Enquirer,  Sept  28,  1828. 
Magazine,  IX,  188-190.] 

xThe  following  note,  a  contribution  to  the  study  of  a  local  problem  of 
very  long  standing  (since  1835),  has  been  extracted  as  of  interest  (cf. 
article  by  Dr.  Dame,  Magazine,  XII,  338-342 : — 

March  23,  1835 — The  Committee  which  had  been  appointed  for  the  pur- 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         107 

Officers  of  College  to  teach  private  classes  in  their  respective 
departments  when  deemed  necessary  by  the  Faculty;  if  these 
duties  in  any  department  become  very  arduous,  other  Professors 
to  give  assistance. 

Officers,  except  the  President,  to  reside  in  the  College;  those 
with  families  not  to  sleep  there  unless  very  necessary  from  dis- 
orders. No  college  tenement  to  be  rented  for  a  boarding  house ; 
that  officer  of  College  first  becoming  head  of  a  family  to  have 
first  choice  of  residences  available. 

Salary  appropriation :  $1200  plus  tuition  fees. 

pose  of  examining  into  the  conduct  of  those  members  engaged  in  carry- 
ing off  the  bell  offered  the  following  report  which  was  accepted. 

""To  the  Union  Society 

"The  committee  appointed  this  morning  to  examine  into  the  reports 
which  have  been  circulated  concerning  those  members  who  were  engaged 
in  carrying  off  the  bell  on  Saturday  evening  last  respectfully  report,  that 
in  pursuance  with  their  instructions  they  waited  on  Mr.  Root,  and  subse- 
quently on  Mrs.  Jos.  Todd,  and  have  ascertained  the  reports,  as  we  ex- 
pected were  very  much  exaggerated.  The  following  is  the  amount  of  the 
statement  made  by  Mr.  Root.  He  says  that  about  twelve  o'clock  on  Sat- 
urday night  he  was  awakened  by  a  considerable  noise,  which  had  dis- 
turbed some  of  his  family,  but  as  soon  as  he  heard  the  ringing  of  the  bell, 
he  conjectured  that  it  Was  some  frolic  of  the  students  of  college,  and  was 
not  himself  at  all  alarmed,  but  that  he  was  afterward  induced  to  arise 
by  ascertaining  that  some  of  the  young  ladies  were  considerably  alarmed. 
He  found  that  the  alarmed  were  the  new  students  who  had  never  heard 
anything  of  the  kind  before,  and  were  at  a  loss  to  conjecture  what  it 
meant.  That  during  the  disturbance  there  was  some  knocking  at  one  of 
his  windows,  which  was  answered  from  within  by  Mrs.  Jordan  who  was 
in  the  room,  he  (Mr.  Root)  requesting  Mrs.  Jordan  not  to  speak  as  it 
would  do  no  good.  He  heard  the  firing  of  pistols  and  blowing  of 
trumpets — Knew  nothing  of  any  attempt  to  get  into  the  window.  He 
heard  the  names  of  several  persons  called,  and  among  others  his  own  name 
called,  but  heard  no  abusive  language  or  swearing  used  towards  himself 
or  others.  *  *  *  We  may  further  remark  that  the  conversation  of  Mr. 
Root  evidently  indicated  that  the  noise  was  a  cause  of  considerable  dis- 
turbance among  his  family  and  that  he  also  was  somewhat  hurt  at  its 
occurrence. 

In  conclusion  your  Committee  beg  leave  to  remark  that  the  exaggerated 
accounts  which  have  arisen  from  this  occurrence  ought  to  be  a  warning  to 
the  members  of  society  to  deter  them  from  any  like  conduct  in  future. 
For  even  should  they  do  nothing  improper,  reports  will  most  probably 
be  circulated,  injurious  to  themselves,  to  college  and  to  their  society — In 
view  of  which  we  offer  the  following  resolution  for  the  consideration  of 
Society. 

"Resolved 

"That  Society  disapproves  of  any  conduct  on  the  part  of  its  members, 
directly  or  indirectly  calculated  to  injure  or  in  any  way  disturb  peaceful 
and  inoffensive  citizens." 

Which  we  respectfully  report 

S.  O.  Southall,  ) 

J.  Tidball  [■    Committee 

H.  H.  Wood. 


108  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Committee  to  confer  with  Mr.  Edward  Colston,  regarding  a 
proposition  made  by  him  to  the  Trustees  on  the  subject  of 
the  funds  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Virginia;  and  the  education 
of  indigent  sons  of  Master  Masons. 

1835.  Apr.  24.  Mr.  Berkeley. 

Report  of  Committee  to  sell  lands  near  King's  Tavern:  Sale 
Feb.  19,  1833  at  $10,  $15,  $20,  and  $22.50  an  acre.  Total  real- 
ized $2670.75. 

Treasurer  authorized  to  employ  an  assistant  agent  to  collect 
the  dues  to  the  College  outstanding. 

Approval  of  the  arrangement  with  the  Rev.  Dr.  Baxter  to  in- 
struct the  Senior  Class  during  the  next  session. 

Resolutions  on  the  death  of  President  Cushing:  Mr.  Isaac 
Read  to  be  requested  to  deliver  a  commemoration  address  at  the 
next  commencement  (Thomas  Atkinson,  alternate).1 

1835.  June  30.   Col.  Carrington. 

Major  James  Morton  resigns  as  Trustee. 

Edward  Ruffin,  Esqr.,  of  Prince  George,  presents  a  copy  of 
the  second  volume  of  his  Farmers'  Register,  containing  his  essay 
on  Calcareous  Manures. 

The  Rev.  Daniel  Lynn  Carroll  of  Brooklyn,  New  York,  was 
elected  President. 

1835.   July  1.   Col.  Carrington. 

S.  C.  Anderson  and  H.  N.  Watkins  a  Committee  to  respond  to 
the  invitation  of  the  Legislature  to  make  known  to  that  body  the 
situation  and  wants  of  this  institution. 

Mr.  Zebulon  M.  P.  Powers  of  Amelia  elected  Professor  of 
Mathematics. 

Salary  apportionment:     14/40  of  appropriation  and   fees  to 
the  President. 

8/40  of  appropriation   (with  proportion  of 
fees)  to  each  Professor. 

1Mr.  Cushing,  who  did  his  work  notwithstanding  a  heavy  physical  handi- 
cap, had  gone  South  shortly  before.  He  died  at  Raleigh,  North  Carolina, 
towards  the  end  of  April. 

Jonathan  Peter  Cushing,  the  builder  of  the  New  College  at  Hampden 
Sidney,  was  born  in  New  Hampshire  in  1793.  A  graduate  of  Dartmouth 
in  1817,  his  scientific  bent  must  have  been  somewhat  due  to  Professor 
Adams  (Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy),  and  to  James  Freeman 
Dana  (Harvard  1813),  appointed  in  1816  Lecturer  in  Chemistry  at  Dart- 
mouth. The  late  Benjamin  M.  Smith,  D.  D.,  a  man  of  wide  experience, 
said :  "Mr.  Cushing  was  the  best  teacher,  in  any  department,  I  have 
known."  Mr.  Cushing  was  Vice  President  of  the  first  Virginia  Historical 
Society.  His  address  before  that  body  in  1833  is  good  proof  of  the  range 
and  strength  of  his  opinions. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDjEN-SIDNEY.         109 

[Printed  in  Virginia  Senate  Document,  1836. 

HAMPDEN  SIDNEY  COLLEGE. 

To  the  President  and  Directors  of  the  Literary  Fund : 

In  obedience  to  a  resolution  of  the  president  and  trustees  of 
Hampden  Sydney  College,  appointing  us  a  committee  for  the 
purpose  of  answering  the  circular  of  the  president  and  directors 
of  the  literary  fund,  we  beg  leave  to  state,  that  Hampden  Sydney 
was  incorporated  in  the  year  1783 — that  in  May  1784,  the  legisla- 
ture of  Virginia  made  a  donation  to  the  college  of  four  hundred 
and  twelve  acres  of  land  lying  near  the  college,  which  had  been 
the  property  of  Spiers  &  Co. — In  December  1794,  the  legislature 
made  a  further  donation  to  this  institution  of  twelve  hundred 
acres  of  land  lying  in  the  upper  end  of  Prince  Edward  county, 
which  had  been  the  land  of  Robert  Rutledge ;  both  of  these 
tracts  of  land  had  escheated  to  the  commonwealth,  and  it  is  be- 
lieved by  the  committee  they  are  poor  lands  and  of  small  value. 
The  value  of  the  first  mentioned  tract  may  be  ascertained  by 
reference  to  the  records  of  the  general  court  where  by  law  the 
valuation  was  recorded.  These  tracts  of  land  have  been  sold 
except  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres.  Except  the  above 
donations,  the  college  has  been  entirely  supported  by  private 
munificence.  The  funds  of  the  college  consist  of  money  at  in- 
terest at  six  per  centum. 

By  the  report  of  the  treasurer  up  to  1st  September,  1835,  the 
principal  is  $15,319.84;  interest  then  due  $1,547.89.  The  college 
is  indebted  about  $1,000.  There  is,  in  addition  to  the  foregoing, 
the  balance  of  a  subscription,  from  which  we  expect  to  receive 
about  $2,000,  which  will  make  the  principal  of  the  funds  of  this 
college  little  upwards  of  $17,000.  The  buildings  belonging  to  the 
institution  are — the  college  building,  which  has  forty-eight  rooms 
for  students — a  centre  building,  in  which  are  the  chapel,  two  lec- 
ture rooms  and  two  society  halls.  In  addition,  there  are  a  presi- 
dent's house,  a  professor's  house  and  a  steward's  establishment. 
The  college  has  a  few  books,  scarcely  deserving  the  name  of  a 
library.  The  two  societies  have  each  respectable  libraries.  There 
is  belonging  to  this  institution  a  good  philosophical  and  chemical 
apparatus.  The  officers  in  college  are  a  president  and  three  pro- 
fessors. The  annual  revenue  for  the  support  of  these  will  be 
the  interest  on  the  fund  aforesaid,  of  $17,000,  together  with  the 
tuition  fees.  The  room  rents,  it  is  thought,  will  keep  the  college 
building  in  repair.  The  tuition  is  at  the  rate  of  four  dollars  a 
month ;  board  not  to  exceed  nine  dollars  per  month.  For  the 
government  and  course  of  studies,  we  refer  to  a  printed  pamphlet, 
which  contains  the  laws  and  regulations  of  the  institution,  which 
is  herewith  enclosed.     The  wants  of  the  college  are  funds  to 


no      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

build  three  houses  for  professors,  and  funds  to  enable  us  to  in- 
crease the  pay  of  the  present  professors  and  maintain  two  other 
professors,  and  a  teacher  in  the  preparatory  school.  This  col- 
lege has  contended  with  difficulties  which  no  other  institution  of 
the  kind  in  the  state  has  had  to  encounter;  yet  it  has  sustained 
itself  respectably  among  them  all.  The  average  number  of  stu- 
dents at  this  college,  from  its  foundation,  has  been,  as  we  have 
learned  from  our  late  president,  about  sixty.  The  location  of 
this  college  is  as  healthy  as  any  situation  between  the  Blue 
Ridge  and  tide  water.    Which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

Samuel  C.  Anderson, 
Henry  N.  Watkins, 
Committee  of  the  Presi- 
dent and  Trustees  of 
Hampden  Sydney  Col- 
lege. 
October  28th,  1835. 

COLLEGE  CIRCULAR. 

Those  who  are  appointed  to  direct  the  education  and  conduct  of 
youth  assembled  at  a  public  institution,  must  feel  a  degree  of 
responsibility  to  the  parents  and  guardians  of  those  committed 
to  their  care.  Parents  and  guardians  are  themselves  naturally 
anxious  to  know  the  character  and  proficiency  of  their  sons  and 
wards.  It  is  also  important,  that  parental  affection  and  authority, 
which  governed  the  child  when  at  home,  should  not  be  forgotten 
when  he  is  removed  to  college,  but  cherished  as  the  most  hon- 
ourable motive  to  industry  and  virtue. 

These  considerations  induce  the  faculty  to  transmit,  at  the 
close  of  each  session,  a  correct  and  impartial  statement  of  the 
conduct  and  proficiency  of  each  student.  In  attempting  to  do 
exact  justice,  they  may,  however,  fail  in  some  instances;  but  it 
will  ever  give  them  pleasure  to  correct,  in  a  subsequent  communi- 
cation, any  mistake.  They  believe,  however,  that  there  is  more 
liability  to  err,  especially  in  the  article  of  behaviour,  on  the 
favourable  side. 

It  is  important  to  remark,  that  the  character  of  a  student  often 
changes  during  his  continuance  at  college.  Some,  who  begin 
well,  end  ill;  but  a  larger  number,  who  were  once  culpable,  re- 
form, and  reach  the  highest  standing.  If  parents,  then,  observe 
that  their  sons  are  doing  well,  their  approbation  and  advice  may 
preserve  them  in  well-doing.  If  deficiences  or  faults  are  noted, 
the  youth  should  be  exhorted  and  encouraged  to  repair  them. 
To  reform  is  perfectly  practicable,  and  often  occurs.  If  dili- 
gence in  study  has  been  greater  than  success,  no  fault  is  at- 
tributed ;  the  youth  is  unfortunate,  not  blameable. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        in 

That  no  obscurity  may  rest  on  the  following  report,  it  may  be 
mentioned,  that  No.  i,  No.  2,  and  No.  3,  in  scholarship,  denote 
so  many  degrees  of  merit — not  comparative,  but  absolute;  i.  e. 
the  first  in  his  class  may  not  reach  the  assumed  standard  of 
excellence,  but  be  marked  No.  2,  though  no  one  has  a  higher 
grade.  No.  1,  denotes  a  high  degree  of  merit;  No.  2,  a  medium 
share  of  merit;  and  No.  3,  a  standing  lower  than  the  medium. 
When  a  student  is  distinguished  in  either  of  these  grades,  the 
word  "distinguished"  is  added  to  the  number.  And  as  distinc- 
tions in  the  article  of  scholarship  are  themselves  various,  this 
variety  is  also  marked:  thus  if  a  student  is  marked  No.  1,  dis- 
tinguished (1),  he  is  considered  as  holding  the  highest  standing. 
If  he  is  marked  No.  1,  distinguished  (2),  he  holds  a  degree  less 
eminent;  and  though  No.  1,  marks  more  than  a  medium  standing, 
yet  not  so  high  as  No.  1,  distinguished  (3). 

In  the  articles  of  behaviour  and  industry,  No.  1,  denotes  an 
exemption  from  censure;  Nos.  2  and  3,  imply  different  degrees 
of  censure.  Where  the  conduct  of  the  student  has  been  ex- 
emplary in  either  of  these  articles,  he  is  marked  No.  1,  dis- 
tinguished. 

NAME  CLASS  HEALTH 

Scholarship,  No. 
Behaviour,  No. 
Industry,  No. 

Absence  from  College  Duties. 
Recitations 

times  with  excuse 

.    without  excuse 
Chapel 

times  with  excuse 

without  excuse 
Sermon 

times  with  excuse 

without  excuse 
Room 

times  with  excuse 

without  excuse 
Contingent  Expenses. 

Library    

Printing   

Public  Damage 

Private  Damage   

Wood  for  Public  Rooms 

It  is  the  earnest  endeavor  of  the  faculty,  in  administering  the 


U2      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

government  of  college,  to  avoid  all  harshness  and  severity,  and 
to  make  all  suitable  allowance  for  the  inconsiderateness  of  youth. 
Nothing  servile  or  degrading  is  wished.  The  motives  of  action 
are  all  addressed  to  the  student's  interest,  duty  and  honour.  The 
great  object  of  the  trustees  and  officers  of  college,  is  to  render  the 
students  happy,  and  present  them  to  their  parents  and  their 
country,  manly,  learned  and  virtuous.  But  to  the  attainment  of 
these  ends,  correct  conduct,  cordial  compliance  with  the  laws  of 
college,  and  constant  industry,  are  essential.  Experience  has 
fully  proved,  that  great  neglect  in  any  of  these  particulars, 
speedily  influences  the  whole  character,  corrupts  others,  and  ren- 
ders a  separation  from  the  institution  indispensable.  Parents, 
therefore,  will  consult  their  own  and  their  children's  happiness 
by  inculcating  in  the  most  impressive  manner,  an  attention  to 
these  several  points.  And,  if  those  having  sons  here,  shall  be 
consulted  by  others,  who  may  think  of  sending  youth  to  this  col- 
lege, it  will  be  accepted  as  a  favour  if  the  inquirers  be  informed ; 
that  while  the  introduction  of  virtuous,  orderly  and  industrious 
youth  will  be  an  honour  to  the  institution,  the  introduction  of 
different  characters  is  a  misfortune,  and,  that  if  such  enter,  a 
reformation  or  a  removal  is  the  only  alternative. 

By  order  of  the  faculty.] 
Hampden  Sydney  College. 

1835.   Sept.  25.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Dr.  Maupin  was  requested  to  officiate  as  President  in  the  exer- 
cises of  today's  commencement. 

President  Carroll  after  being  legally  qualified  took  his  seat 
in  the  Board. 

Committees :  To  purchase  so  much  of  the  Apparatus  which 
belongs  to  Mr.  Cushing  as  may  be  of  use  to  the  College  or  just 
to  him;  To  repair  the  old' Steward's  tenement,  and  to  add  a 
porch  to  the  new  Steward's  tenement;  To  sell  the  remainder  of 
the  College  lands  [near  King's  Tavern]  ;  To  erect  a  stone  over 
Mr.  Cushing's  grave  in  Raleigh  [at  the  Board's  individual  ex- 
pense, Apr  17.  1838.]  ;  To  settle  amicably  the  dispute  between 
the  Literary  Societies  on  the  subject  of  College  diplomas;  [Pro- 
fessors Dame  and  Branch]  to  contract  for  the  College  wood ;  To 
ask  aid  of  the  Legislature. 

The  usual  salary  appropriation,  of  $1200,  'to  be  made  from  the 
permanent  fund.' 

Mr.  Thomas  Atkinson  asked  to  deliver  his  address  in  com- 
memoration of  Mr.  Cushing,  Oct.  3,  1836,  in  the  College  Church. 

Communications  received  from  the  Rev.  James  Wood,  agent 
of  the  General  Assembly's  Board  of  Education  [Presbyterian 
Church]— Mr.  Wood  offering  to  raise  $25,000  for  the  College  to 
be  invested  as  follows :  in  procuring  all  necessary  fixtures  for  a 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         113 

manual  labour  department;  in  establishing  an  additional  profes- 
5orship.  The  College  to  be  under  contract  to  receive,  free  of 
tuition,  25  beneficiaries  of  the  Board  of  Education,  'they  eas- 
ing the  privilege  of  manual  labour  in  both  departments.' 

Proposition  accepted,  and  friends  of  the  College  urged  to  sus- 
tain this  important  enterprise.1 

1836.  Apr.  27.  Mr.  Berkeley. 

Resolved,  that  an  effort  be  made  to  raise  $50,000  for  Hampden 
Sidney  College,  and  that  an  agent  or  agents  be  appointed  to  make 
application  to  the  friends  of  the  institution  for  a  subscription 
payable  in  five  annual  instalments. 

The  Faculty  appointed  a  Committee  to  draw  up  and  report  to 
the  Board  at  their  annual  meeting  a  course  of  study  for  the  insti- 
tution, and  to  make  such  regulation  of  the  studies  in  the  interim 
as  they  may  deem  necessary  to  meet  the  proposed  change  in  the 
Mathematical  department. 

Professor  Powers  allowed  at  the  rate  of  $150  per  annum  until 
he  receives  his  house. 

Committee  to  settle  the  difficulty  between  the  two  Literary 
Societies  in  relation  to  the  plate  for  diplomas,  authorised  to  pur- 
chase a  plate  for  this  purpose.2 

1836.    Sept.  27-29.    Mr.  Berkeley. 

Dr.  Carroll  and  Mr.  Stanton  to  sell  the  house  called  the  old 
Library  house  and  that  called  the  Old  Fort;  those  houses  when 
sold  to  be  removed  from  the  College  lands  [Rescinded  at  a  later 
session.] 

aSee,  Address,  "Advantages  of  Manual  Labour  Schools"  by  Benjamin  F. 
Stanton  (Trustee  of  the  College  and  pastor  of  the  College  Church) 
before  the  Institute  of  Education  of  Hampden  Sydney  College.  Farmers' 
Register,  IV,  (1836)  271-276 — Copied  from  the  Southern  Literary  Mes- 
senger. Mr.  Stanton,  a  Connecticut  man,  was  a  practical  farmer,  and  it 
is  likely  this  attempt  to  introduce  the  manual  labor  system  was  due  to  him. 

2From  the  records  of  the  Union  Society  it  appears  that  in  1821  (Mar. 
20)  'subscriptions  were  taken  for  the  purchase  of  a  diplomatic 
stamp  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  the  profits  of  which  to  be  at  the  dis- 
posal of  the  Society.'  Feb.  21,  1835,  a  committee  reported  that  there  were 
on  hand  'fourteen  society  diplomas  and  twenty  college  diplomas ;  stamp 
for  college  seal  much  worn.'  July  23,  1836 — 'Seal  committee  to  confer  with 
the  Trustees  and  ascertain  what  the  Trustees  will  give  for  the  seal.'  The 
bargain  was  made  and  authorized. 

The  College  used  its  own  diploma  seal  in  1812.  From  the  Minute,  it 
seems  that  both  Literary  Societies  in  1836  were  allowed  a  stamp  revenue, 
and  that  conditions  governing  it  became  a  matter  of  dispute. 


H4      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Second  degree  in  the  arts  conferred  on  Dr.  Draper  'of  this 
institution.'1 

xDr.  Draper,  whose  home  at  this  time  was  at  Christiansville  (now  Chase 
City)  in  Mecklenburg  County,  had  a  few  months  before  graduated  in 
medicine  at  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  The  following  extract  from 
the  Farmers'  Register  (IV,  315)  will  serve  to  explain  Dr.  Draper's  con- 
nection with  the  College  before  Sept.  1836,  the  date  of  his  election  to  a 
Professorship. — 

Proceedings  of  the  Mineralogical  Society  of  Virginia. 

At  a  meeting  of  several  gentlemen,  held  at  Prince  Edward  Court  House, 
on  Saturday,  July  23d  1836,  for  the  purposes  hereinafter  mentioned,  Dr. 
W.  B.  Smith  was  appointed  Chairman,  and  Dr.  B.  F.  Wilson  Secretary. 

The  objects  of  this  meeting  were,  to  consider,  what  measures  are  most 
likely  to  develop  an  intimate  and  extensive  knowledge  of  the  mineral 
wealth  of  the  State  of  Virginia,  and  to  put  into  operation  such  means  as 
may  tend  to  render  those  resources  available  to  the  purposes  of  public 
good.     *    *    * 

Analytical  Chemistry,  which  is  the  science  furnishing  the  knowledge 
necessary,  is  not  taught  as  a  branch  of  education  in  any  of  the  public  insti- 
tutions of  the  United  States,  and  those  persons  who  are  acquainted  with 
it,  have  almost  entirely  obtained  their  knowledge  of  it  in  foreign  coun- 
tries. The  number  of  such,  of  course,  is  very  limited,  and  totally  inade- 
quate to  the  demand.  The  meeting  therefore  was  fully  impressed  with 
the  high  importance,  to  the  public,  of  providing  ample  instruction,  by  the 
immediate  establishment  of  a  school  of  chemical  analysis,  assaying  of 
metals,  and  of  all  those  operations  which  are  concerned  in  the  determina- 
tion of  the  value  of  minerals  and  ores.    *    *    * 

It  is  hoped  by  the  establishment  of  a  school  in  which  all  subjects  in  any 
manner  connected  with  mineralogy  are  taught,  and  especially  practical  in- 
struction afforded  in  Chemical  analysis,  that  arrangements  might  shortly 
be  made,  for  a  systematic  analysis  of  the  Virginia  minerals.  Gentlemen 
residing  at  a  distance,  and  finding  specimens  on  their  estates,  might  have 
authentic  information  of  their  composition,  furnished  from  the  labors  of 
the  pupils  of  this  school. 

With  reference  to  the  pupils  themselves,  no  one  of  course,  without  some 
previous  knowledge  of  the  general  principles  of  scientific  Chemistry,  would 
be  able  to  commence  in  this  department.  Graduates  of  respectable  col- 
leges, and  those  who  had  attended  full  courses  of  lectures,  would  find 
their  acquirements,  in  this  particular,  sufficient  as  a  commencement.  To 
make  provision,  however,  for  such  as  might  be  desirous  of  entering  the 
School  without  any  previous  preparation,  suitable  arrangements  could  be 
made,  by  which  that  amount  of  preliminary  knowledge  might  be  acquired 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College.     *     *    * 

Being  impressed  with  the  importance  of  this  subject,  the  meeting  pro- 
ceeded to  organize  itself  into  society,  to  be  known  by  the  name  and  title 
of  the  Mineralogical  Society  of  Virginia.  A  constitution  was  adopted, 
and  the  following  gentlemen  elected  officers : — Richard  N.  Venable,  Esq., 
President;  Dr.  W.  B.  Smith,  Vice  President,  and  W.  S.  Morton,  Secre- 
tary. 

The  Society  then  proceeded  to  engage  the  services  of  John  W.  Draper 
M.  D.  as  its  chemist  and  mineralogist,  an  appointment  deriving  advantage 
from  his  knowledge  of  the  geology  and  mining  operations  of  South 
America.  As  a  very  high  assurance  of  his  acquaintance  with  Analytical 
Chemistry,  the  following  note  is  subjoined  from  the  celebrated  Dr.  Turner, 


Daniel  Lynn  Carroll. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        115 

Faculty  empowered  to  employ  a  teacher  of  modern  languages, 
'provided  the  remuneration  for  his  services  do  not  come  from 
the  funds  of  College.' 

Dr.  John  W.  Draper  elected  Professor  of  Chemistry  and 
Natural  Philosophy — house  allowance  $150. 

Salary  adjustment:  President  $1500;  Professors  $1000  each; 
if  these  amounts  not  made  up  from  tuition  fees,  Treasurer  to 
pay  the  deficiency. 

Six  hundred  dollars  appropriated  for  repairs  and  additions  to 
the  Philosophical  apparatus.  Dr.  Draper  to  be  paid  $500  for  his 
past  services. 

Tuition  fees  :     Winter  term,  $30 
Summer  term  $20. 

Committee  to  raise  funds,  to  furnish  each  member  of  the  Board 
with  a  book  for  subscriptions  whenever  he  can  attend  to  the 
subject. 


Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the  University  of  London,  and  author  of  the 
work  which  is  so  extensively  used  as  a  text  book  on  Chemistry,  in  most 
of  the  universities  and  colleges  of  the  United  States. 

"I  hereby  attest  that  Mr.  Draper  assiduously  attended  a  complete 
course  of  my  lectures  on  Chemistry  in  this  University  during  the  years 
1830-31,  and  at  the  close  of  the  session  gave  decided  proof  of  the  suc- 
cess of  his  exertions,  by  obtaining  a  high  certificate  of  honors,  after  a 
full  examination  in  writing.  I  know  that  he  had  likewise  pursued  the 
practical  parts  of  Chemistry,  by  private  study,  and  that  he  is  well  quali- 
fied for  any  situation  connected  with  the  practical  applications  of  Chem- 
istry. 

B.  Turner,  F.  R.  S.-Lon.  &  Edin. 

Professor  of  Chemistry. 

[University  of  London] 

The  Society's  Chemist  was  then  directed  to  proceed  at  once  with  the 
organization  of  the  School ;  and  at  an  early  opportunity,  to  announce  to 
the  public,  the  particulars. 

In  reference  to  the  forgegoing,  we  the  undersigned,  fully  and  heartily 
agreeing  in  the  object  and  determination  of  this  society,  recommend  it  to 
the  cordial  encouragement  of  our  fellow  citizens. 

D.  L.  Carroll,  Wm.  I.  B.  Bedford,  Saml.   Branch, 

Geo.  H.  Matthews,  Saml.  B.  Simpson  Geo.  A.  Baxter, 

Wm.  A.  Hughes,  Noble  Snell,  Stephen  Taylor, 

Thos.  S.  Flournoy,  Saml.  C.  Anderson,  W.   Berkeley, 

Chs.   Smith,  James  Madison,  Henry  N.  Watkins. 
F.  N.  Watkins, 

[Half  of  these  were  Trustees  of  the  College. — Dr.  Draper's  "Intro- 
ductory Lecture  to  a  Course  of  Chemistry  and  Natural  Philosophy,  De- 
livered in  Hampden  Sidney  College,  Richmond.  T.  W.  White,"  was 
reviewed  in  the  August,  1836,  number  of  the  Southern  Literary  Mes- 
senger, Vol.  II.  p.  596.] 


n6      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1836.  Oct.  28.    Mr.  Berkeley. 

Order  rescinded,  authorising  students  to  board  at  other  places 
than  with  the  Steward:  'provided,  that  parents  and  guardians 
are  permitted  to  board  in  their  own  houses  their  sons  or  wards/ 
The  Steward  to  be  rent  free. 

1837.  Sept.  26-28.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Settlement  ordered  for  the  hire  of  Lewis,  the  property  of  Mr. 
Cushing,  for  part  of  the  year  1836  at  the  rate  of  $10  per  month. 

The  Board  of  Trustees  greatly  regretting  the  resignation  of 
Mr.  Pike  Powers  of  the  Professorship  of  Mathematics,  as  an 
act  of  justice  to  him  unanimously  declared  that  he  has  discharged 
the  duties  of  his  office  with  an  ability  and  fidelity  highly  satisfac- 
tory to  them.1 

The  receiver  of  College  to  pay  over  to  the  Professor  of  Chem- 
istry the  fees  required  to  be  paid  over  by  the  class  for  keeping 
up  the  apparatus,  disbursements  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  Pro- 
fessor. 

Mr.  William  Maxwell  was  duly  qualified  as  a  Trustee. 

President  Carroll  and  Messrs.  H.  E.  Watkins  and  Sam'l  C. 
Anderson  a  Committee  'to  appeal  to  the  General  Assembly  of 
our  State  for  such  a  grant  of  money  to  the  College,  either  by 
way  of  annual  instalments  or  otherwise,  as  may  enable  the  insti- 
tution to  continue  and  increase  the  services  which  it  has  been  so 
long  rendering  the  Comtmonwealth  in  promoting  the  cause  of 
virtue,  science,  and  letters  in  our  land/ 

Francis  H.  Smith,  of  the  Borough  of  Norfolk,  elected  Profes- 
sor of  Mathematics ;  Francis  L.  Sampson  alternate. 

[To  the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia. 

The  Memorial  of  the  Undersigned  Committee  of  the  Trustees 
of  Hampden-Sidney  College,  respectfully  represents. 

That  this  college,  one  of  the  oldest  in  the  Commonwealth,  was 
originally  established,  by  individual  contributions,  and  has  been 
sustained,  mainly  by  the  unwearied  exertions  and  liberality  of 
its  patrons  and  its  friends.  It  has  received  no  aid  from  the  State, 
except  a  donation  of  land,  of  but  inconsiderable  value,  at  an 

1Professor  Powers  held  the  Chair  of  Mathematics  at  the  University  of 
Virginia  during  the  year  1839-40,  and  again  in  1842.  He  was  an  alumnus 
of  the  University.  He  died  in  1897,  Rector  of  St.  Andrew's  Church, 
Richmond. 

Powers  was  locum  tenens  at  the  University,  after  the  death  of 
Bonnycastle  and  before  the  arrival  of  Sylvester.  Dr.  Dabney,  who  had 
been  a  student  under  Powers  at  Hampden  Sidney  and  was  a  student  at 
the  University  in  1840,  greatly  preferred  Powers  to  Sylvester — "Practice, 
I  hope,  may  give  him  the  facility  of  imparting  his  ideas  which  Mr. 
Powers  possessed  in  a  high  degree."  Letter  of  Dec.  15,  1840.  Life  and 
Letters  of  Robert  Lewis  Dabney,  p.  53. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPEXEN-SIDNEY.         117 

early  period  of  its  existence.  The  difficulties  with  which  it  has 
had  to  contend,  from  the  want  of  a  suitable  endowment,  at  all 
times  great,  are  now  such,  as  to  excite  serious  apprehensions, 
that  it  cannot  be  long  supported  without  some  public  aid.  De- 
pending in  a  great  measure  upon  tuition  fees  for  its  resources* 
its  wants,  at  a  time  like  this  must  necessarily  be  urgent.  Without 
a  competent  endowment,  and  with  a  limitted,  uncertain,  and  in- 
sufficient income,  it  is  now  difficult,  and  may  soon  be  impracti- 
cable, to  secure  and  retain,  suitable  instructors  and  professors, 
and  the  College,  if  sustained  at  all,  must  be  upon  a  scale,  of 
greatly  diminished  usefulness.  In  this  season  of  peculiar  exi- 
gency, the  Trustees  of  this  Institution  are  constrained  by  their 
duty  to  the  public,  to  appeal  for  aid,  to  the  General  Assembly, 
who  are  justly  regarded,  as  the  guardians  of  those  great  interests 
which  are  obviously  involved,  in  the  proper  training  and  educa- 
tion of  the  youth  of  Virginia. 

Your  Memorialists  beg  leave  to  state,  that  extensive  buildings, 
of  durable  construction,  for  the  accommodation  of  its  students 
and  the  officers  of  the  College,  have  been  erected ;  and  an  un- 
usually large,  and  excellent  Chemical  and  Philosophical  apparatus 
has  been  procured,  all  at  a  very  considerable  expense.  The  needs 
of  erecting  these  buildings,  and  procuring  these  facilities  of  in- 
struction, have  all  been  afforded  by  private  contributions,  with 
the  exception  of  the  small  donation  from  the  State,  already  re- 
ferred to.  These  provisions  for  the  purposes  of  education,  thus 
made,  require  the  aid  of  but  a  moderate  appropriation,  to  render 
them  efficient,  permanent,  and  greatly  useful  to  the  public.  With- 
out such  aid,  your  memorialists  fear,  that  this  institution  alike 
venerable  for  its  usefulness  and  its  age,  after  languishing  a  little 
longer,  must  sink  into  utter  ruin,  unless  preserved  by  the  private 
liberality,  which  has  been  so  long  burthened  with  its  support. 
They  therefore  respectfully  and  earnestly  pray,  that  your  Hon- 
orable Body,  would  grant  such  aid  to  this  College,  as  in  your 
estimation,  the  publick  interest  may  require. — We  indulge  the 
hope,  that  the  services  which  it  has  long  rendered,  under  the 
most  trying  difficulties,  to  the  cause  of  education,  will  be  regarded 
as  giving  it  a  just  claim  to  your  consideration,  and  that  the 
appeal  we  now  make,  in  its  behalf,  to  your  liberality  will  not 
be  in  vain. 

D.   L.   Carroll 

Sam'l  C.  Anderson 

Henry  E.  Watkins 

Committee  of   the   Trustees 

of  Hampden  Sydney  College. 

Feb.  3rd  1838.] 


n8      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Salary  adjustment  [in  lieu  of  $800,  nett  College  income,  plus 
tuition  fees]  : — The  Faculty  to  receive  a  sum  not  less  than  $4000, 
to  be  divided  by  rule  heretofore  enacted;  distribution  predicated 
upon  a  President  and  three  Professors.  But  salary  of  Professor 
of  Chemistry  &c  to  be  not  less  than  $1000. 

1837.   Nov.  1.    Mr.  Berkeley. 

Mr.  Smith,  the  Professor-elect,1  to  be  put  in  possession  of  the 
four  rooms  formerly  occupied  by  Professor  Draper  in  the 
Steward's  house. 

1837.  Dec.  1.    Col.  Madison. 

A  Resolution  was  offered  to  the  Board  to  establish  a  medical 
department  in  the  City  of  Richmond:  after  much  discussion  on 
the  subject  the  following  regulations  for  the  management  of  said 
department  were  adopted : 

Regulations  for  the  Medical  Department  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College. 

Resolved,  that  the  Medical  Faculty  be  authorised  to  supply 
any  vacancy  which  may  occur  in  said  Faculty  until  said  vacancy 
shall  be  filled  by  the  President  and  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College. 

1838.  Apr.  17.   Henry  E.  Watkins. 

On  application  of  two  students,  Thomas  T.  Tredway  and  Wil- 
liam M.  Marshall,  these  excused  from  a  final  examination  on  the 
Differential  and  Integral  Calculus — 'while  the  Board  regard  this 
study  as  important  and  by  no  means  to  be  dispensed  with  in  ordi- 
nary cases.' 

» 
1Mr.  Smith  was  at  once  chosen  Clerk  of  the  Faculty  and  the  following 
is    his   first   entry   in   the    earliest   Faculty    Book   preserved.      Afternoon 
Chapel  was  not  discontinued  until   some  time  after  the  war: 

H|ampden    Sidney    College,    Nov.    i,    1837. 
The   Faculty  met  this  morning.     All  present.     Recitations   ordered  to 
commence  on  Monday  next  in  the  following  order : 
Senior  Class  in  Metaphysics  daily,   from  3  to  4  P.  M. 
Chemical  Class  Mondays,  Wednesdays  and  Fridays,  9  to  10  A.  M. 
Junior      Mathl.      Class  Tuesdays  and  Thursday,  9  to  10  A.  M. 
Sophomore  do.        do.      daily,    10   to    11    A.    M. 
Freshman     do.        do.     daily,    11   to   12  A.   M. 
Junior  Language  Class  Tuesdays  and  Thursday,  11  to  12  A.  M. 
Sophomore     do.       do.     daily,   from  3  to  4  P.  M. 
Freshman       do.      do.     daily,  from  2  to  3  P.  M. 
Morning  Chapel  30  minutes  after  sunrise. 
Afternoon  Chapel  4  P.  M. 

The  Faculty  Adj'd, 

By  order  of  the  Faculty, 
F.  H.  Smith, 
Secy. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        119 

Colo.  Madison  offered  the  following  Preamble  and  Resolution 
which  was  unanimously  adopted:  "Whereas  this  Board  under 
the  hope  that  by  keeping  up  a  well  qualified  Faculty  of  the  Col- 
lege the  time  would  come  that  from  the  increased  number  of 
students,  the  fees  from  tuition  and  room  rents  would  be  sufficient 
to  support  such  Faculty,  or  that  in  default  of  this,  aid  might  be 
obtained  from  the  State,  have  for  several  years  appropriated 
portions  of  the  permanent  fund  in  addition  to  the  whole  of  the 
annual  income  of  the  institution,  by  which  system  the  permanent 
fund  has  been  greatly  reduced,  and  it  being  obvious  that  we  are 
likely  to  be  continually  disappointed  in  our  hopes  of  aid,  and  see- 
ing that  the  system  heretofore  pursued  must  if  continued  for  a 
very  few  years  wholly  exhaust  the  permanent  fund  and  leave 
the  institution  unable  even  to  keep  the  buildings  in  repair ; 
Therefore,  Resolved,  as  the  opinion  of  this  Board,  that  from  and 
after  the  expiration  of  the  next  session,  the  Board  ought  not  to 
appropriate  in  any  way  for  any  purpose  any  money  over  and 
above  the  actual  income  of  this  institution. 

A  contingent  fund  to  be  raised  by  subscription. 

The  Faculty  to  be  assured  of  the  desire  of  the  Board  to  sus- 
tain them  in  their  respective  offices  and  its  purpose  promptly  to 
make  an  effort  to  procure  the  funds  necessary  for  the  support  of 
the  institution. 

1838.   Sept.  25-26.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Henry  E.  Watkins  and  Nathaniel  E.  Venable  a  committee  to 
sell  the  Old  Library  Building. 

The  President,  at  each  annual  meeting  of  the  Board,  to  make 
a  written  communication  to  the  Board  giving  an  account  of  the 
state  of  the  College,  the  transactions  of  the  current  year,  and 
making  such  suggestions  as  he  may  deem  expedient. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Carroll  tendered  his  resignation  as  President  to 
take  place  at  the  end  of  the  present  session. 

The  Steward  readily  agreeing,  students  permitted  to  board  in 
such  houses  or  families  as  the  Faculty  may  approve,  provided 
the  price  of  board  shall  not  exceed  ten  dollars  per  month. 

William  Maxwell,  Esqr.,  was  elected  President. 

Committee  to  consult  with  the  County  School  Commissioners 
of  Prince  Edward  County  with  regard  to  the  disposition  of  the 
surplus  funds  in  their  hands. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Maxwell,  the  following  Resolutions  adopted : 
That  the  salary  of  the  President  be  $1400,  of  each  Professor 
$1000 — if  interest  from  permanent  fund,  with  the  tuition  fees, 
should  not  reach  $4400.  the  Board  to  pledge  themselves  to  en- 
deavor to  make  up  tfie  deficiency — if  said  income  should  be  more 
than  $4400,  all  surplus  to  be  divided  as  above ;  That  the  perma- 
nent fund  should  be  $40,000  and  kept  inviolate — $5000  should 


120      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

be  raised  at  once  for  improvements  to  buildings  and  grounds,  the 
President  assisted  by  a  Committee  to  make  appeals  for  subscrip- 
tions ;  That  the  Library  should  be  increased,  especially  by  works 
of  reference. 

'Mr.  Maxwell  here  stated  that  he  had  been  duly  informed  by 
the  Committee  that  the  Board  had  elected  him  President  of  the 
College,  and  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee  being  absent,  he 
would  say  to  the  Board  that  after  proper  reflection  he  had  con- 
cluded to  accept  the  office  and  would  enter  upon  the  duties  of  it 
without  delay.' 

Resolutions,  on  motion  of  Henry  E.  Watkins,  'That  the  thanks 
of  the  Board  be  and  they  are  hereby  rendered  to  the  Revd.  Doer. 
Carroll  for  his  past  services  to  the  institution,  with  the  assurances 
of  their  cordial  regard  for  him  and  their  best  wishes  for  his  wel- 
fare and  usefulness.'1 

1839.  June  26.   Colo.  Madison. 

Communication  received  from  Professor  Draper  informing  the 
Board  that  he  resigns  his  office  of  Professor  of  Chemistry  and 
Natural  Philosophy  at  and  from  the  end  of  the  present  session,2 

*Dr.  Carroll's  parents  emigrated  from  Ireland,  settling  in  Pennsylvania. 
His  father  was  brought  up  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church;  his  mother 
was  a  Scotch  Presbyterian.  After  graduating  at  Jefferson  College  and 
Princeton  Seminary,  he  was  pastor  of  a  church  in  Litchfield,  (Connecticut 
(the  installation  sermon  being  preached  by  Mr.  Stanton,  who  was  doubt- 
less instrumental  in  bringing  him  to  Hampden  Sidney),  and  of  the 
First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Brooklyn.  He  came  from  Brooklyn  to 
Hampden  Sidney.  Dr.  Carroll  was  'gifted  with  a  very  considerable 
share  of  keen  Irish  wit.  He  was  very  apt  to  be  the  life  of  any  company 
into  which  he  was  thrown*. 

General  Smith,  a  member  of  the  Faculty  during  Dr.  Carroll's  adminis- 
tration, in  his  reminiscences  of  Hampden  Sidney  (Magazine,  XI,  99) 
says :  "An  unfortunate  controversy  between  the  Old  and  New  Schools 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  was  then  at  its  height  and  tended  very  much 
to  diminish  the  patronage  of  the  college.  Dr.  Carroll,  the  President,  was 
a  cultivated  Christian  gentleman,  but  a  great  controvertialist.  Being  of 
another  church  I  tried,  in  a  kind  way,  to  check  his  partizanship,  telling 
him  that  his  articles  would  alienate  our  Old  School  patrons,  and  finally 
suggested  to  him  that  he  was  trying  to  run  Hampden  Sidney  upon  the 
Charter  of  old  William  and  Mary  College.  'How  is  that?'  he  said.  I 
replied  that  the  cnarter  of  William  and  Mary  required  its  President  to 
carry  on  a  controversy  with  some  heretic  once  in  three  years.  He 
laughed  heartily  at  the  point  but  did  not  mend  his  course." 

2Dr.  Draper  left  Hampden  Sidney  in  September  or  October,  1839,  be- 
coming Professor  in  the  University  of  New  York.  He  was  very  active 
in  the  organization  of  the  medical  department  of  the  University  of 
New  York. 

His  researches  on  the  chemical  phenomena  of  light  in  both  the  organic 
and  inorganic  world  include  the  most  valuable  work  done  by  him. 
Daguerre's  announcement  of  his  discovery  of  the  action  of  sunlight  on 
silver,    and   its   application   to   the   permanent   preservation    of    views,   in 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         121 

whereupon  Daniel  Gardner  was  appointed  to  discharge  the  duties 
of  that  office  for  one  year  from  Sept.  26,  and  such  further 
time  as  may  be  hereafter  agreed  upon  by  the  parties  for  the  sal- 
ary and  perquisites. 

The  Board  was  informed  that  Professor  Smith,  now  absent,, 
intends  to  resign  his  office  of  Professor  of  Mathematics  at  and 
from  the  end  of  the  present  session,  whereupon  Benjamin  S. 
Ewell  was  appointed  prospectively. 

Resolved,  upon  a  communication  from  the  Faculty  laid  before 
the  Board  by  the  President,  that  all  pious  youths  in  indigent 
circumstances  wishing  to  pursue  studies  looking  to  the  ministry 
of  any  evangelical  church  be  admitted  free  of  tuition  if  properly 
recommended. 

The  President,  by  and  with  the  advice  of  J.  D.  Wood  and  N. 
E.  Venable,  to  contract  for  enclosing  the  College  and  the  Presi- 
dent's lot  with  wall  and  railing  in  some  decent  and  tasteful 
manner. 

Hereafter  no  student  shall  be  allowed  to  present  himself  for 
graduation  in  the  medical  department  of  H.  S.  College,  unless 
he  has  previously  attended  the  full  course  of  lectures  in  the  in- 
stitution, or  one  course  in  some  respectable  medical  School  and 
the  second  in  H.  S.  College,  and  has  attended  the  dissecting  room, 
of  the  College  for  one  session. 

) 
1839.   Sept.  26.    Mr.  Berkeley. 

The  President  as  agent  to  report  subscriptions  obtained  to 
this  date. 

Thanks  of  this  Board  tendered  to  Professor  Smith1  and  Pro- 
fessor Draper  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  their  duties  while  in 
office. 

Moses  D.  Hoge  appointed  Tutor  for  one  year  at  $400. 

1839,  was  taken  up  by  Draper.  He  made  it  the  subject  of  special  study, 
and  was  the  first  person  in  the  world  to  apply  it  to  individuals.  "The 
first  photographic  portrait  from  life  was  made  by  me,"  he  says. 

[See  article,  John  W.  Draper,  Appleton's  Cyclopedia  of  American 
Biography  and  Memoir,  by  George  F.  Barker,  National  Academy,  1886.] 

The  tradition  is  that  Dr.  Draper  made  his  first  experiments  in  pho- 
tographic portraits  from  life  in  the  physical  laboratory  ["philosophical 
hall"]  at  Hampden  Sidney,  and  from  the  dates  assigned,  the  fact  seems 
probable. 

His  son,  Dr.  Henry  Draper,  specialist  in  celestial  photography,  was 
born  at  Hampden  Sidney  in  1837. 

Professor  Smith,  a  graduate  of  West  Point,  wished  to  put  Hampden 
Sidney  'under  complete  martial  law  and  make  it  a  sort  of  West  Point* 
[Life  of  Robert  Lewis  Dabney,  p.  47].  Going  to  Lexington  he  became 
the  chief  promoter  of  the  Virginia  Military  Institute,  of  which  he  was 
Superintendent  for  fifty  years. 


122      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Recommendations  of  the  President  in  his  first  annual  report: 
A  Master  for  the  Preparatory  department  of  the  Freshman 
class,  under  the  direction  of  the  Professor  of  Ancient  Languages 
and  the  President — to  have  his  board  in  the  Mess  Hall  where 
he  shall  preside  at  the  table  and  keep  order  and  decorum — to 
have  apartments  in  the  College  which  he  shall  occupy  day  and 
night  to  preserve  order  and  decorum  throughout  all  the  College — 
to  be  ex  officio  Curator  of  the  College  buildings — salary  $400, 
from  the  contingent  fund;  Of  the  utmost  imiportance  to  raise 
the  permanent  fund  to  $60,000  within  five  years  'in  order  to 
enable  the  Trustees  to  enlarge  the  institution  by  the  addition  of 
a  Professor  of  Modern  Languages  and  a  Master  or  Tutor  for 
the  Sophomore  Class,  and  eventually  to  establish  the  College 
upon  a  sure  and  permanent  basis  for  the  benefit  of  the  present 
age  and  of  all  posterity;'  The  President  to  be  authorised  to  em- 
ploy an  agent  or  agents  to  assist  him  in  raising  subscriptions  and 
donations. 

Certificate  (with  seal  of  the  College  annexed)  to  Wm.  H. 
Goode,  of  his  having  passed  through  the  Science  course. 

The  sum  of  $500  subscribed  by  Col.  C.  Carrington  appropri- 
ated to  enclosing  the  College,  commencing  with  a  blank  brick 
wall  60  feet  out  according  to  the  plan  submitted.  Building  Com- 
mittee to  contract  for  the  erection  of  the  brick  wall  to  extend 
from  the  S.  E.  and  S.  western  Corners  of  the  College  in  a  line 
with  the  front,  each  60  feet  long  and  6  feet  4  inches  high  accord- 
ing to  the  plan  submitted ;  also  authorised  to  contract  for  cutting 
a  door  in  place  of  the  middle  window  in  the  S.  end  of  the  Chappel 
and  furnish  the  said  door  with  a  flight  of  white  stone  steps, 
made  with  checks  after  the  Greek  fashion ;  further  authorised  to 
contract  for  a  brick  and  wood  wall  and  fence  in  front  of  the 
President's  House  according  to  the  plan  submitted,  provided  the 
sum  of  $500  can  be  raised  by  subscription.  And  the  said  Com- 
mittee shall  also  have  the  pailing  of  the  President's  lot  well  and 
thoroughly  repaired.1 

1840.   Sept.  9.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Professors  Ewell  and  Gardner,  and  Tutor  Hoge  re-appointed 
for  one  year. 

'Murphy,  a  member  of  the  Junior  Class,  was  appointed  assist- 
ant teacher  of  the  Preparatory  Department,  and  to  aid  the 
Faculty  in  preserving  the  order  of  the  College  and  occasionally 
in  instructing  the  classes   as  they  may  order  and   direct,   and 

1<(Mr.  Maxwell  talks  much  of  putting  the  place  in  thorough  repair, 
and  making  it  attractive  by  having  fine  fruits,  trees,  pleasure  walks, 
and  so  forth  *'  *  *  I  should  have  no  doubt  of  Mr.  Maxwell's  suc- 
cess if  it  was  not  for  this  lamentable  party  strife." — Letter  of  Mrs.  John 
Holt  Rice.    Life  of  Robert  Lewis  Dabney,  p.  47-48. 


William    Maxwell. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         123 

for  this  service  he  is  to  be  allowed  his  tuition  fees  and  one  half 
the  price  of  his  board  in  the  Mess  Hall,  the  Steward  agreeing 
to  waive  the  other  half.' 

Samuel  W.  Watkins  permitted  to  teach  the  Modern  Languages 
under  direction  of  the  Faculty,  and  for  such  fees  only  as  the 
Faculty  may  deem  fair  and  adequate.1 

'On  motion,  ordered  that  an  application  be  made  in  the  name 
of  the  Board  to  all  the  Churches  within  the  bounds  of  East. and 
West  Hanover  Presbytery,  for  such  regular  annual  subscriptions 
to  the  funds  as  they  may  severally  agree  to  afford  for  the  term 
of  five  years.' 

1841.  July  20.  Mr.  Berkeley. 

Committee  to  confer  with  the  President  and  Professors  re- 
garding salaries :  the  President  and  Professors  Branch  and  Ewell 
agree  to  accept  the  income  of  the  permanent  fund  plus  tuition 
fees,  less  $500  to  Dr.  Gardner  for  services  as  Professor  of  Chem- 

^ee,  Advertisement,  Watchman  of  the  South,  Oct.  1840. 

— The  Winter  Session  of  this  institution  will  commence  on  the  1st 
day  of  November  next,  and  terminate  on  the  4th  Wednesday  of  April 
lollowing. 

The  Faculty  of  College,  and  other  teachers,  with  their  several  depart- 
ments of  instruction,  are  as  follows : 

William  Maxwell,   President,   Professor  of  Moral   Philosophy  &c  &c. 

Robert   G.    Branch,    Professor   of    Ancient    Languages. 

Benjamin   S.  Ewell,   Professor  of   Mathematics. 

Daniel    P.   Gardner,    Professor   of   Natural    Philosophy   and   Chemistry. 

Moses  D.  Hoge,  Tutor,  Teacher  of  the  Preparatory  Department. 

Samuel  W.  Watkins,  Teacher  of  Modern  Languages. 

The  Classical  Course  of  instruction  occupies  four  years,  in  each  of 
which  there  are  two  sessions. 

The  studies  of  the  Freshman  and  Sophomore  years  are  the  Latin  and 
Greek  languages,  with  the  Classical  Literature  connected  with  them ; 
Arithmetic,  Algebra,  and  Geometry  in  all  its  branches. 

Those  of   the   Junior  year   are  the   higher   Classics   and   Mathematics, 
Natural    Philosophy  and   Chemistry,    (including  notices   of   various   sub 
jects  connected  with  it),  Astronomy,  Geology,  and  Botany. 

And  those  of  the  Senior  year  are  Mental  Philosophy,  Moral  Philoso- 
phy (including  the  Evidences  of  Christianity),  Civil  Polity,  Political 
Economy,  the  Law  of  Nations,  Logic,  Rhetoric,  and  Belle-Lettres. 

Besides  this  Classical  course,  there  is  also  an  English  course,  occupy- 
ing three  years,  and  embracing  all  the  same  studies  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  Ancient  Languages.     *     *     * 

Moses  D.  Hoge, 
Clerk  of  the  Faculty. 

["Hampden  Sidney  adhered  closely  in  those  days,  as  now,  to  the  curri- 
culum of  studies,  and  although  many  changes  have  taken  place  by  the 
introduction  of  the  elective  system  into  most  of  the  colleges,  she  has 
lost  nothing  by  insisting  on  a  thorough  ground-work  in  the  Classics 
and  Mathematics."  Gen.  Francis  H.  Smith,  Reminiscences,  Magazine 
XI,    (1893)    p.  100.] 


124      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

istry  during  the  winter  session  [Sept.  21,  1841,  Dr.  Gardner  pro- 
posed that  his  whole  course  should  extend  through  the  winters 
of  two  years]. 

1841.  Nov.  5.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Mr.  Lewis,  the  Steward,  agrees  to  board  the  Assistant  Tutor 
(Mr.  Hughes)  free  of  Charge,  on  the  condition  that  the  Trustees 
pay  the  sum  of  $40  towards  erecting  a  negro  house  on  the  Stew- 
ard's premises. 

The  Union  Society  having  proposed  to  make  application  to  the 
Legislature  for  a  Charter,  the  Trustees  consider  the  books  &c 
of  the  Society  as  sufficiently  and  perfectly  safe  under  the  cover  of 
the  College  Charter  and  they  will  always  take  pleasure  in  pro- 
tecting all  the  interests  of  so  valuable  and  meritorious  a  Society. 

Cheap  fenders  to  be  procured  for  the  use  of  the  College  and 
the  roof  to  be  covered  with  the  best  fire-proof  paint. 

Preamble  and  Resolutions  unanimously  adopted: 

'Whereas  the  College  stands  in  great  need  of  the  renewed  and 
cordial  support  of  all  its  friends  who  can  be  excited  and  en- 
gaged to  furnish  it  with  students  and  also  with  such  pecuniary  aid 
as  shall  enable  the  Board  to  maintain  it  on  its  actual  footing  for 
the  present  and  to  establish  it  on  a  solid  basis  for  the  future; 
and  whereas  the  Board  recall  and  recognise  with  great  pleasure 
the  interesting  fact  that  this  institution  was  originally  founded 
within  the  bounds  of  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover,  since  divided 
into  East  and  West  Hanover  Presbyteries,  under  the  auspices 
of  the  said  Presbytery  by  a  Licentiate  laboring  under  its  care, 
and  was  at  first  and  has  ever  since  been  mainly  supported  by 
the  clergy  and  laity  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  within  those 
bounds,  aided  from  time  to  time  by  the  liberal  services  and  con- 
tributions of  others  in  various  parts  of  the  State  *  *  *  Re- 
solved, that  the  Presbyteries  of  East  and  West  Hanover  be  and 
they  are  hereby  solemnly  requested  to  recognise  the  College  as 
being  under  the  more  immediate  patronage  of  their  bodies  in  such 
manner  as  they  shall  think  most  proper. 

Resolved,  that  the  said  Presbyteries  be  and  they  are  hereby 
requested  to  adopt  such  measures  as  they  may  deem  most  suitable 
and  convenient  to  furnish  the  College  with  an  increased  number 
of  students  and  to  supply  the  Board  with  funds  for  its  immediate 
support  and  for  the  enlargement  of  the  permanent  fund  to  a 
proper  amount.' 

1842.  Apr.  27.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

The  Tutor  to  receive  the  deposit  money  and  from  it  pay  out 
such  charges  as  are  properly  bound  upon  it ;  the  Tutor  to  super- 
intend the  College  servant  and  see  that  his  time  is  fully  occu- 
pied.    The  College  servant  to  receive  no  fees  of  students  for 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         125 

services  rendered  in  the  day  time,  to  fetch  water  once  a  day  &c, 
to  put  in  glass  in  the  windows  of  the  College  at  least  once  a 
month  (if  such  repairs  are  needed)  and  to  occupy  himself  in 
such  time  as  he  has  to  spare  in  rendering  other  services  to  the 
students  such  as  the  Tutor  may  consider  proper. 

Professor  Ewell  proposing  to  raise  by  subscription  a  sum  of 
money  not  exceeding  $600  for  mathematical  and  astronomical  in- 
struments, the  Board  'recommend  Mr.  Ewell  to  the  public  confi- 
dence and  support/ 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Sparrow,  N.  E.  Venable,  and  H.  E.  Watkins 
a  committee  to  revise  the  laws  and  course  of  studies,  and  recom- 
mend retrenchments. 

1842.   June  24.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Resolved,  that  the  present  and  every  future  meeting  of  the 
Board  to  be  opened  with  prayer. 

The  Christmas  recess  to  be  reduced  to  two  days. 

Salaries:  President  $1400,  Professors  $1000;  College  not  to  be 
bound  beyond  income  (including  subscriptions). 

Tuition  fees  reduced:   Winter  session  $18;  summer,  $12. 

Fees  remitted  to  sons  of  ministers. 

President  Maxwell,  P.  J.  Sparrow,  and  James  D.  Wood  a 
committee  to  revise  the  laws  and  prepare  a  Catalogue  of  the 
Alumni.1 

xDr.  Dame's  alumni  catalogue,  compiled  about  1835,  was  lost.  The 
circumstances  have  been  mentioned. 

Writing  in  the  Magazine  (IV.  37)  Joseph  McMurran,  of  the  Class  of 
1852,  said, — "Some  years  ago  the  writer  of  this,  article  was  engaged 
for  six  months  in  hunting  up  the  records  of  the  College,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  making  out  an  accurate  and  full  list  of  the  alumni,  but  he  was 
only  partially  successful,  and  the  result  of  his  labors  was  the  alumni 
record  published  in  the  annual  catalogue  of  1857,  and  was  the  first  effort 
of  this  kind  that  was  ever  published.  In  the  annual  catalogue  of  1867 
another  alumni  record  was  published,  the  result  of  the  labors  of  Pro- 
fessor Charles  Martin,  but  with  the  exception  of  a  few  more  asteriks, 
and  more  names  of  later  graduates,  there  was  but  little  information  that 
the  first  catalogue  did  not  contain.  Since  then  Mr.  [Charles  Van] 
Woodson,  by  request  of  the  Trustees  and  Faculty,  made  an  effort  to  get 
up  a  correct  and  full  list  of  the  alumni  and  the  earliest  students  of  the 
College,  but  how  he  succeeded  the  writer  has  never  learned."  This  was 
written  in  1885.  Joseph  McMurran  was  a  lifelong  friend  of  the  College 
and  its  benefactor. 

The  materials  collected  by  Mr.  Woodson  came  into  the  hands  of  Presi- 
dent Mcllwaine  and  Dr.  Hooper.  Dr.  Mcllwaine  especially  prosecuted  the 
work  with  great  diligence  and  system,  Dr.  Hooper's  services  being  con- 
siderable also.  Finally  in  1908  an  Alumni  Catalogue  [1776-1906],  as 
full  as  it  was  possible  to  make  it,  was  issued  under  the  editorship  of 
Professor  J.  H.  C.  Bagby,  who  spent  four  years  on  the  work.  Presi- 
dent McAllister  was  much  interested  in  this  enterprise  and  gave  his 
assistance. 


126      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Chair  of  Natural  Philosophy  and  Chemistry  to  be  discontinued ; 
Professor  of  Mathematics  to  fill  that  Chair,  to  be  assisted  by  a 
Tutor  for  the  Freshman  and  Sophomore  classes. 

'The  Board  of  Trustees  of  Hampden  S.  College  having  found 
it  necessary  to  discontinue  the  Chair  of  Nat.  Philosophy  and 
Chemistry — resolved,  that  the  thanks  of  the  Board  be  tendered 
to  Doct.  Daniel  P.  Gardner  for  his  services  in  that  chair,  the 
duties  of  which  he  has  discharged  with  distinguished  ability.'1 

1842.  Sept.  27.   Mr.  Berkeley. 

Nathaniel  E.  Venable,  Revd.  P.  J.  Sparrow,  and  Revd.  Theo- 
drick  Pryor  a  committee  to  inquire  into  the  causes  of  the  de- 
cline of  Hampden  S.  College. 

Mr.  Maxwell  reported  that  the  overture  to  the  Presbyteries 
of  East  and  West  Hanover  had  been  received  by  them  with  great 
favour.  Resolutions  adopted  by  the  Presbyteries  considered  by 
the  Board  as  evidence  of  perpetual  union  between  the  College 
and  those  bodies. 

The  President  and  committee  to  attend  meetings  of  the  Pres- 
byteries 'for  maintaining  a  friendly  correspondence  between  the 
Board  and  those  bodies  and  more  particularly  for  securing  the 
objects  of  said  Resolutions.'  The  Board  will  receive  a  joint 
visiting  committee  from  the  Presbyteries. 

1843.  June  8.   Dr.  W.  S.  Morton. 

Committee  to  endeavor  to  settle  the  difficulties  in  the  Medical 
Faculty  [petition,  April  19,  asking  for  the  removal  of  a  Pro- 
fessor] ;  settlement  impossible — the  Professor  should  resign.  The 
Professor,  present,  resigns. 

Benjamin  S.  Ewell,  Professor  of  Mathematics  and  Natural 
Philosophy,  authorized  to  make  application  to  the  President  of 
the  United  States,  the  Secretary  of  War,  or  any  other  officer 
having  authority,  for  the  loan  to  the  College  of  a  number  of 

aDaniel  Pereira  Gardner,  born  at  Rio  de  Janeiro,  a  graduate  in  medi- 
cine of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania  1838,  was  the  son  of  Dr.  Gard- 
ner (attending  physician  to  Dom  Pedro  I,  Emperor  of  Brazil)  an  Eng- 
lishman whose  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Senhor  de  Paiva-Pereira  of 
Portugal.  Dr.  John  W.  Draper  married  a  sister  of  Professor  Gardner. 
Leaving  Virginia  in  1842,  Dr.  Gardner  lectured  for  a  time  at  New  York 
University.  He  then  settled  in  Memphis,  Tennessee;  returned  to  New 
York  and  practiced  medicine  at  Yonkers  and  at  Dobb's  Ferry.  He  died 
at  Dr.  Draper's  house  at  Hastings  on  Hudson  in  1853. 

Dr.  Gardner  was  a  member  of  several  agricultural  societies.  He  pub- 
lished in  1846  (re-issued  in  1858)  a  Farmers'  Dictionary,  (Harpers) 
and  in  1847  a  Medical  Dictionary  (Harpers),  republished  in  1855  and  in 
1864.  Published  at  London  and  at  Philadelphia  1848  a  Medical  Chemistry 
(listed  in  Allibone). 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         127 

mathematical  instruments  at  the  City  of  Washington  and  in  no 
present  use. 

Resolutions  on  the  death  of  William  Berkeley — 'an  old,  true, 
and  faithful  friend  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  whose  interests 
he  has  always  labored  to  promote  with  eminent  zeal.' 

1843.  Sept.  21.  Henry  E.  Watkins. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Maxwell,  Geography  added  to  the  present 
studies  of  the  Freshman  Class,  and  Natural  History  to  those  of 
the  Sophomore  Class ;  said  classes  to  recite  three  times  a  day 
instead  of  twice. 

James  M.  Rice  (Languages)  and  Charles  S.  Venable  (Mathe- 
matics) appointed  assistant  teachers — board  and  $50  as  com- 
pensation to  each — to  reside  in  College. 

Prof.  Benjamin  S.  Ewell  appointed  Curator. 

Junior  class  to  be  assessed  $7  instead  of  $5  for  the  purchase 
of  Chemicals. 

1844.  Apr.  17.    Col.  J.  P.  Marshall. 

N.  E.  Venable,  Henry  E.  Watkins,  and  James  D.  Wood  a 
Committee  'to  consider  whether  any  and  what  measures  should 
be  adopted  to  support  the  College  the  ensuing  year.' 

1844.   Aug.  20-21.   Dr.  Wm.  S.  Morton. 

The  President,  on  the  part  and  in  the  presence  of  the  Faculty, 
submitted  to  the  Board  statements,  accompanied  by  sundry 
papers,  in  relation  to  the  existing  state  of  insubordination  among 
the  students  of  the  institution.  A  committee  of  three  appointed 
to  confer  with  the  refractory  students,  with  the  view  of  ascer- 
aining  whether  the  said  students  are  now  actuated  by  a  rebellious 
or  contrite  disposition. 

Report:  The  object  which  the  students  had  in  view  in  this 
protest,  which  they  acknowledge  was  injudiciously  and  hastily 
drawn  up,  was  so  to  express  their  sympathy  with  the  sus- 
pended students  as  to  secure  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees. 
They  became  convinced  of  the  impropriety  of  the  step  and  there- 
fore sent  the  second  communication  to  the  Faculty,  meaning 
thereby  to  withdraw  the  protest  unconditionally,  and  they  at  that 
time  wished,  as  they  now  do,  to  return  to  their  duties  as  members 
of  College,  as  if  these  disagreeable  circumstances  had  not 
occurred. 

Regarding  a  memorial  presented  by  the  students :  'The  mat- 
ters set  forth  in  said  memorial  do  not  justify  any  action  on  the 
pait  of  the  Board  nor  tend  to  impair  its  confidence  in  the 
President.' 


128  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1844.  Sept.  30.   Dr.  Wm.  S.  Morton. 

Committee  to  ascertain  the  balance  due  the  Professors,  that 
the  same  may  be  promptly  paid  to  them. 

A  letter  was  received  from  Mr.  Maxwell,  tendering  his  resig- 
nation of  the  office  of  President,  which  was  accepted.  It  was  re- 
solved, that  in  accepting  the  resignation  of  President  Maxwell, 
the  Board  of  Trustees  express  their  individual  confidence  in 
him.1 

The  Revd.  W.  S.  Plumer  was  elected  President  of  Hampden 
Sydney  College  [Declined  Nov.  8.  1844]. 

1845.  May  1.   The  Revd.  Dr.  Reid. 

Professor  Robert  G.  Branch  by  letter  resigned  the  professor- 
ship of  Ancient  Languages.  Resolved  unanimously,  'that  the 
thanks  of  this  Board  are  due  and  hereby  tendered  to  Prof. 
Branch  for  the  faithful  manner  in  which  he  has  discharged  the 
duties  of  his  Professorship,  and  he  is  recommended  to  the  liberal 
patronage  of  the  public  in  his  new  vocation  as  instructor  of 
young  ladies.' 

The  Revd.  Patrick  J.  Sparrow  was  elected  President  of  Hamp- 
den Sydney  College. 

Mr.  N.  E.  Venable  reported  that  John  Lee,  LL.  D.,  of  Hart- 
well  (Eng.)  had  presented  to  the  College  through  the  Revd.  Mr. 
Leavitt  of  Boston2  a  medallion  bust  of  John  Hampden  also  a 
marble  copy  of  a  monument  erected  in  Chalgrove  field  in  June 
1843.  Mr.  V.  also  reported  the  correspondence  which  had  taken 
place  between  President  Sparrow  and  Dr.  Lee  in  reference  to 
the  same.  The  thanks  of  the  Board  tendered  to  Dr.  Lee  for  his 
valuable  and  interesting  present,  as  also  to  the  Revd.  Mr.  Leavitt. 

^'William  Maxwell  was  one  of  the  most  eminent  men  in  the  State. 
He  had  gained  a  high  reputation  at  the  bar.  He  graduated  at  Yale  Col- 
lege in  1802,  where  he  was  a  favorite  pupil  of  Dwight,  studied  law,  and 
in  1809  made  an  argument  in  the  case  of  Wilson  and  Cunningham  vs. 
the  Marine  Insurance  Company  of  Norfolk  which  placed  him  in  the 
front  rank  of  his  profession.  From  1809  to  1826,  when  he  withdrew  for 
a  short  time  from  the  bar,  not  a  year  passed  in  which  he  did  not  make 
a  speech  that  was  the  talk  of  the  time.  From  the  bar,  he  passed  to  the 
House  of  Delegates  and  to  the  Senate  of  Virginia.  He  was  the  only 
eminent  man  that  I  ever  knew,  who  would  ever  venture,  or  who  ever 
ventured,  to  appear  before  such  a  body  as  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society 
of  Yale  on  one  of  its  formal  anniversaries,  without  a  single  line  of 
written  preparation.  Yet  Maxwell  made  the  attempt  and  succeeded. 
When  the  Committee  of  the  Society  reported  its  thanks  to  the  speaker 
and  requested  a  copy  of  the  speech  for  publication,  they  could  hardly 
believe  their  ears  when  told  that  the  speech  was  entirely  extemporaneous." 
Hugh  Blair  Grigsby:    Centennial  Address  (MS). 

2This  was  doubtless  Dr.  Joshua  Leavitt,  editor  of  the  "Emancipator" 
and  the  "Chronicle"  (the  latter  the  earliest  daily  anti-slavery  paper)  ; 
tariff  reformer,  and  advocate  of  cheap  postage. 


William   S.  Plumer. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        129 

Messrs.  Venable  and  Francis  N.  Watkins  a  committee,  with  the 
Faculty  to  receive  and  dispose  of  these  memorials,  and  to  make 
arrangements  for  a  proper  public  celebration. 

1845.   Sept.  16-18.   Henry  E.  Watkins. 

Committee  reported  that  the  Hampden  Memorials  were  in  the 
possession  of  the  Faculty  of  the  College,  and  that  the  Committee 
had  corresponded  with  the  Hon.  Wm.  C.  Rives  who  had  con- 
sented to  make  a  public  address  before  the  Corporation  of  this 
College. 

The  President  reported  that  he  had  received  from  the  Revd. 
Mr.  Leavitt  of  Boston,  the  friend  of  Dr.  Jno.  Lee  of  England, 
a  communication  expressing  the  deep  interest  felt  by  Dr.  Lee  in 
the  interests  of  the  College,  and  his  intention  to  present  certain 
books  to  the  College.1 

Should  a  convention  in  behalf  of  the  College  be  held  in  Rich- 
mond, some  member  of  the  Faculty,  with  Messrs.  Plumer  and 
Leyburn,  to  represent  the  College. 

Debts  to  the  Faculty  previous  to  Oct.  1,  1844,  to  be  settled  by 
arbitration. 

William  T.  Richardson  appointed  assistant  teacher  of  Lan- 
guages and  Mathematics. 

The  Treasurer  to  represent  the  Corporation  stock,  in  all  meet- 
ings of  stockholders  of  companies  or  corporations  in  which  this 
College  is  interested,  personally  or  by  proxy. 

The  degree  of  LL.  D.  was  conferred  on  John  Lee  (D.  C.  L.) 
of  Hartwell,  England. 

The  committee  on  conferring  with  the  Faculty  reported 
verbally:  that  the  Faculty  had  agreed  to  undertake  the  instruc- 
tion of  the  College  next  year — that  their  salaries  were  to  be  in  the 
proportion  of  $1400  to  Mr.  Sparrow,  $1200  to  Mr.  Ewell,  and 
$800  to  Mr.  Richardson,  payable  only  out  of  the  incomes  of  the 
College — that  the  said  agreement  is  to  be  reduced  to  writing  and 
signed. 

1845.  Nov.  12. 

'Memo.     On  this  day  the  Hon  Wm.  C.  Rives  delivered  an  able 

*In  1851  Dr.  Lee  presented  to  the  "Library  of  the  Hampden  and  Sid- 
ney University  in  the  United  States  of  America"  a  copy  of  'Aedes  Hart- 
ivellianae,  Notices  of  the  Manor  and  Mansion  of  Hartwell,  by  Captain 
W.  H.  Smyth,  R.  N.  London:  Printed  for  Private  Circulation  by  John 
Bowyer  Nichols  and  Son,  Parliament  Street,  1851.' 

The  Manor  of  Hartwell  was  in  possession  of  a  branch  of  the  Hamp- 
dens  for  upwards  of  180  years  before  1617,  passing  to  the  Lees  on  the 
death  of  Sir  Alexander  Hampden,  a  kinsman  of  John  Hampden.  Dr. 
John  Lee,  F.  R.  S.  etc,  succeeded  to  the  estate  in  1827. 


i3o      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Discourse  on  the  Character  and  Services  of  John  Hampden  be- 
fore the  Corporation  and  a  large  audience.     F.  N.  W.'1 

[The  medallion  portrait  is  placed  over  the  main  entrance  to  the 
Chapel.     The  monument  stands  in  the  Library. 

Facing  the  monument,  (a  truncated  pyramid  of  square  base)?, 
the  order  of  the  inscription  is  as  follows : — 

[i]  HERE 

In  this  Field  of  Chalgrove 

John  Hampden. 

After  an  able  and  strenuous 

But  unsuccessful  resistance 

In  Parliament. 

And  before  the  Judges  of  the  Land 

To  the  measures  of  an  Arbitrary  Court 

First  took  arms. 

Assembling  the  levies  of  the  associated 

Counties  of    Buckingham  and  Oxford 

:  In  1642. 

And  here 

Within  a  few  paces  of  this  spot 

He  received  the  wound  of  which  he  died. 

While  fighting  in  defence 

Of  the  free  monarchy 

And  ancient  liberties  of  England 

June  18  1643. 

In  the  two  hundredth  year 

From  that  day 

This  stone  was  raised 

In  reverence  to  his  memory. 

[3]  RAISED 

By  subscription  June  18  1843. 

Bedford.  Nugent. 

Breadalbane.  Brougham. 

Fortescue.  Denham.  C.  J. 

Hampden  Buckinghamshire.  Sudeley. 

Lovelace.  Leigh. 

Francis  Burdett.  Colborne. 

\ 
^'Discourse  on  the  Character  and  Services  of  John  Hampden  and  the 
Great  Struggle  for  Popular  Constitutional  Liberty  in  his  Time.  By  W. 
C.  Rives,  Esq.  Delivered  before  the  Trustees,  Faculty  and  Students  of 
Hampden  Sydney  College,  the  12th  November,  1845."  Richmond: 
Printed  by  Shepherd  and  Colin.  1845.  pp.  68.  [Mr.  Rives  was  a  student 
at  Hampden  Sidney,  1807-1809.  In  1849  he  was  a  second  time  Minister- 
to  France.! 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         131 

Henry  Austen.  J.  Twisselton  Fiennes. 

Robert  Otway  Cave.  Charles  T  D'Eyncourt. 

George  Dashwood.  John  Easthope. 

John  Lee.  George  Stephen. 

John  Comley  Olive.  John  Bell. 

James  Trevor  Senior.  John  Temple  Leader. 

Charles  Kemys  Tynte.  Charles  Spencer  Ricketts. 

Thomas  Bishop  Greenwood.  Silvanus  Seymour. 

Francis  Hayward.  John  Lloyd. 

William  Lines.  James  Jackson. 

John  Hampden.  Revd.  Charles  J.  Ridley. 

Revd.Renn  D.  Hampden.  D.  D.  Revd.  Frederick  Twistleton, 

D.  C.  L. 
[2-left] 

Vestigia  Nulla  Retrorsum 

Bos  relief:     Hampden 

John  Hampden 

[4-right] 

Bas   relief: 
Hampden  arms. 

1846.    Mar.  17.    Henry  E.  Watkins. 

Mrs.  Martha  King  elected  Steward  (succeeding  W.  M. 
Lewis)  :  rent — board  of  one  officer  and  the  College  servant,  and 
the  board  of  the  Trustees  and  their  horses  at  their  meetings. 
Students,  under  the  direction  of  the  Faculty  permitted  to  board 
out  of  the  commons  hall  (except  at  taverns),  price  of  board 
in  commons  $8. 

Faculty  and  Clerk  (F.  N'.  Watkins)  to  report  a  plan  for  a 
primary  department. 

Committee  to  devise  means  for  increasing  the  funds ;  Wm.  T. 
Richardson  to  be  agent,  if  the  instruction  of  College  can  be 
otherwise  provided  for. 

1846.  Aug.  21.   Dr.  W.  B.  Smith. 

The  Clerk  reported  a  letter  from  Prof.  B.  S.  Ewell,  resigning 
the  office  he  held  in  this  College.1     Thanks  tendered  to  Prof. 

aThe  Cincinnati  Foundation  had  at  last  become  available,  and  Pro- 
fessor Ewell  was  invited  to  Washington  College  (Va)  to  be  the  first 
occupant  of  the  Chair  of  Mathematics  thus  endowed.  Twice  afterwards 
he  was  asked  to  return  to  Hampden  Sidney,  good  evidence  of  his  very- 
valuable  services  while  there.  Colonel  Ewell  was  a  graduate  of  West 
Point,  an  officer  in  the  Confederate  army,  and  for  many  years  Presi- 
dent of  the  College  of  William  and  Mary.  It  was  he  who,  when  there 
were  no  students  at  William  and  Mary,  had  the  college  bell  rung  regu- 
larly  notwithstanding. 


132      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Ewell  for  the  very  valuable  services  he  has  rendered  the  Col- 
lege as  instructor  and  officer. 

Elections :   Charles  S.  Venable,  Professor  of  Mathematics 
Rev.  E.  Ballentine  "     Languages 

(declined  Sept.  22.  1846) 
Francis  J.  Mettauer,  M.  D.,       "       "       Chemistry 

and  Natural  Philosophy. 

Salaries :  Whole  of  tuition  fees  and  interest  of  permanent 
fund  (provided  total  does  not  exceed  $4200)  to  be  apportioned, 
12/42  to  the  President,  10/42  to  each  Professor.  All  of  the 
Professors  to  reside  in  or  near  the  College,  and  120  days'  notice 
of  resignation  required. 

Committee  to  confer  with  the  Faculty  elect  and  report  any 
alteration  they  deem  proper  in  the  course  of  studies  of  the  Col- 
lege similar  to  the  course  and  plan  at  the  University. 

Tuition  fee  to  be  $40,  no  student  to  receive  remission  unless 
by  order  of  the  Faculty. 

Ordered,  that  the  Faculty  be  instructed  not  to  suspend  here- 
after the  College  exercises  on  the  court  days  of  Prince  Edward 
County. 

1846.  Sept.  22.   D.  Comfort. 

President  Sparrow  was  by  unanimous  vote  appointed  agent 
for  the  College,  and  by  like  vote  he  was  requested  to  act  during 
the  ensuing  vacation  and  collect  funds  for  the  College.1 

Committee  on  repairs  to  make  repairs  only  absolutely  neces- 
sary. 

Committee  to  provide  for  instruction  in  the  Ancient  Languages, 
and  if  advised,  to  organise  a  Primary  Department. 

1847.  Mar.  3.   Dr.  W.  B.  Smith. 

Charles  Martin  of  Ohio  Unanimously  elected  Professor  of 
Ancient  Languages  from  and  after  1st  June  next. 

The  Committee  on  instruction  reported  that  they  had  em- 
ployed Dr.  Graham  and  Mr.  F.  S.  Sampson  [of  the  Theological 
Seminary]  as  Instructors  till  June. 

*A  petition  was  sent  to  the  Legislature,  dated  Jan.  7,  1847,  reciting 
that  the  College  has  been  sustained  almost  entirely  by  private  contribu- 
tion and  that  it  possesses  good  buildings,  but  that  the  funds  have  fallen 
so  low  as  to  put  it  out  of  the  power  of  the  trustees  to  pay  competent 
professors.  It  would  be  improper  for  the  college  to  make  further  appeals 
to  individuals  while  the  State  has  such  a  large  fund  to  be  used  for  edu- 
cational purposes.  The  trustees  ask  for  an  annuity  of  $2500  and  agree 
in  return  to  give  free  tuition  to  one  student  from  each  senatorial  dis- 
trict. 


James   P.   Marshall. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        133 

1847.  June  10.   Dr.  W.  B.  Smith. 

Minute  adopted  after  being  discussed: — viz., 

An  Act  to  endow  Hampden  Sidney  College1 — Twelve  hun- 
dred scholarships,  at  one  hundred  dollars  each,  to  be  created 
and  established  in  Hampden  Sidney  College;  subscriptions  pay- 
able on  or  before  August  1st  1848,  provided  not  less  than  six 
hundred  nor  more  than  twelve  hundred  scholarships  shall  be 
sold;  holder's  son  or  sons  to  have  free  tuition  during  natural 
life  of  the  purchaser,  until  youngest  son  shall  have  attained 
the  age  of  twenty  one;  if  holder  have  no  son,  right  of  desig- 
nation or  assignment  allowed  for  twenty  years ;  students  on 
scholarships  to  be  exempt  from  tuition  only;  funds  thus  raised 
to  be  securely  invested  (State  or  U.  S.  stocks)  and  income  ap- 
plied to  salaries.  [July  8, — Amendments;  and  a  tenth  article 
added,  stipulating  that  $500  subscribed  and  paid,  is  to  entitle 
the  scrip-holder  to  nominate  a  scholar  perpetually] 

1847.   Sept.  21.   Dr.  Graham. 

Alexander  Scott  appointed  Librarian.  The  Librarian  to  make 
an  annual  report  to  the  Trustees  on  the  condition  of  the 
Library. 

Ordered,  that  the  next  College  session  commence  with  the 
15th  of  October  1847;  that  there  shall  only  be  nine  weeks  vaca- 
tion in  twelve  months,  viz.  one  from  the  15th  Deer,  terminat- 
ing gth  January  following:  the  other  for  six  weeks  succeeding 
the  Wednesday  before  the  4th  of  July  (Commencement  Day) 

Conditions  at  this  time  were  discouraging  enough.  Alexander  Scott, 
who  began  his  duties  as  Tutor  Jan.  1,  1847,  stated  in  a  letter  published 
in  the  Magazine  (1906,  p.  263)  that  a  few  months  after  his  appointment 
he  learned  that  a  Mr.  Martin  from  Ohio  had  sent  in  an  application  for 
the  Chair  of  Ancient  Languages.  Finding  that  this  was  Charles  Martin, 
his  old  teacher  in  Knox  County,  Ohio,  he  personally  recommended  him 
to  the  Board,  and  Mr.  Martin  was  elected.  And  that  on  his  way  to 
Virginia,  the  Professor-elect  heard  of  a  system  of  scholarships  which 
had  been  adopted  at  'Alexander  Campbell  College,'  Bethaney,  [W]  Va. 
This  system  Mr.  Martin  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  and  the  scheme  met  with  favor. 

Cf.  Howison's  History  of  Virginia.  Vol.  II.  p.  472  [Preface  dated  Nov. 
11,  1847 — The  author  had  just  before  been  a  student  at  the  Theological 
Seminary] — 

'Hampden  Sydney  College,  in  Prince  Edward  County,  has  not  flour- 
ished as  its  friends  had  hoped,  for  a  school  so  unexceptionable  in  its 
origin  and  object.  In  the  last  ten  years,  the  number  of  students  has 
hardly  attained  an  average  of  sixty,  and  now  it  is  much  less.  Difficulties 
have  been  experienced  in  providing  an  efficient  organization  of  its 
faculty.  Within  a  very  short  time  past,  a  change  has  occurred,  which 
will  render  a  complete  reorganization  ultimately  necessary.  Efforts  are 
now  in  progress  to  raise  a  fund,  by  which  permanent  scholarships  will 
be  attached  to  this  college.  With  strenuous  exertions  it  will  again 
prosper ;  without  them,  it  will^  we  fear,  become  extinct.' 


i34  CALENDAR]  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Leave,  without  salary,  granted  to  Prof.  Charles  S.  Venable 
for  one  year. 

On  application  of  Dr.  J.  P.  Mettauer,  leave  granted  Dr. 
Francis  J.  Mettauer  to  fill  the  Chair  of  Chemistry  in  the  Medi- 
cal department  of  Randolph  Macon  College  near  Hampden 
Sidney,1  provided  no  studies  shall  be  taught  by  Prof.  Mettauer  in 
said  medical  department  which  are  taught  in  Hampden  Sidney. 

Resolutions  on  the  death  of  Samuel  Branch  and  Nathaniel 
E.  Venable,  members  of  the  Board. 

The  President  resigned  his  office — correspondence  a  part  of 
the  records. 

Committee  on  Instruction  to  request  Dr.  Wilson  to  act  as 
temporary  President. 

1847.  Oct.  27.   Dr.  Wilson,  Pres.  pro  tern. 

Faculty  requested  to  report  any  changes  deemed  expedient 
by  them  in  the  requisites  for  graduation — and  more  particularly 
on  the  expediency  of  requiring  graduation  in  each  department 
or  professor's  school  as  at  the  University  of  Va. 

1847.  Dec.  15.  F.  S.  Sampson,  Pres.  pro  tern. 

Three  per  cent  to  be  the  certain  compensation  of  agents  for 
scholarships,  and  five  per  cent  if  6oo  scholarships  are  sold. 

Messrs.  Graham,  Leyburn,  and  Venable  a  Committee  of  this 
Corporation  to  appear  before  the  Legislature,  or  either  of  its 
committees,  to  present  the  petition  and  claims  of  this  College 
for  state  aid ;  and  to  make  any  contract  with  the  Legislature  for 
education  of  a  reasonable  number  of  students  gratuitously,  pro- 
vided a  grant  of  money  is  made  to  this  College:  and  that  the 

*Dr.  John  Peter  Mettauer,  (a  son  of  a  French  surgeon  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary army  who  had  settled  in  Prince  Edward  County  after  the  war) 
was  a  surgeon  of  the  first  order.  He  spent  his  life  in  Prince  Edward 
County.  He  organized  his  medical  pupils  in  1837  into  an  institute,  which 
about  1847  became  the  Medical  Department  of  Randolph  Macon  Col- 
lege, at  that  time  in  the  County  of  Mecklenburg.  This  Department 
seems  to  have  had  no  existence  after  the  removal  of  Randolph  Macon 
to  Hanover  County.  See,  Transactions  of  the  American  Surgical  Asso- 
ciation.   1905 — President's  Address    [Dr.   George  Ben  Johnston]. 

It  is  of  interest  to  remember  that  from  1847  to  1853,  the  Medical  De- 
partment of  Hampden  Sidney  College  was  at  Richmond,  and  a  mile 
away  from  Hampden  Sidney  College,  at  Prince  Edward  Court  House, 
was  the  Medical  Department  of  Randolph  Macon  College,  itself  sixty 
miles  distant  at  Boydton. 

The  fancy  may  be  indulged:  Suppose  Chancellor  Taylor's  celebrated 
law  school  at  'Needham'  in  Cumberland  County  had  been  consolidated 
with  Dr.  Mettauer's  Medical  School — these  forming  departments  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College,  embracing  also  the  Theological  Seminary. 
Dr.  John  Lee's  gift  to  the  'University  of  Hampden  and  Sidney'  would 
then  have  been  appropriately  bestowed. 


David  Comfort. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         135 

same    Committee    associate   with   them   Dr.    Maupin,   or   other 
friends  of  the  College  in  Richmond  or  elsewhere. 

1848.  Jan.  14.   S.  C.  Anderson. 

Resolutions  on  the  death  of  Colo.  A.  Dupuy. 

After  a  full  and  free  conference,  and  after  hearing  from  the 
agents  of  the  College,  the  Board  proceeded  to  elect  a  President, 
whereupon  Lewis  W.  Green  of  Baltimore  was  unanimously 
elected  the  President  of  Hampden  Sidney  College. 

Salary  of  the  President  to  be  two  sevenths  of  the  annual  in- 
comes of  the  College  from  the  nett  interest,  dividends,  and 
tuition  fees,  and  the  remaining  five  sevenths  to  be  divided  among 
the  Professorships,  provided  that  the  President's  salary  shall 
not  exceed  $1500  and  that  of  each  Professor  $1000. 

1848.  July  31-Aug.  1.   Dr.  Wm.  B.  Smith.   D.  Comfort. 

Written  contract  made  with  Prof.  Martin  to  provide  for  the 
instruction  and  government  of  the  College  for  the  next  year. 

Committee  on  finance  restricted  in  their  investments  to  Vir- 
ginia and  U.  S.  stocks. 

Prof.  Mettauer  must  reside  at  the  College,  when  his  health 
permits. 

On  an  examination  by  a  Committee  of  the  Board  it  was  ascer- 
tained that  the  600  scholarships  required  by  the  Act  of  June  and 
July  1847  nad  been  subscribed..  Ordered,  that  Graham,  H.  E. 
Watkins  and  Berkeley  report  an  Address  to  the  public  in  rela- 
tion to  the  success  of  the  scheme  of  endowing  the  College. 

Committee  on  Agency  to  sell  as  speedily  as  possible  200  addi- 
tional rights  of  scholarship. 

A  vote  of  thanks  unanimously  tendered  to  Agents  and  all 
friends  who  had  generously  aided  in  the  successful  execution 
of  the  Scholarship  Scheme.1  A  communication  from  the  Presi- 
dent of  Randolph  Macon  College  regarding  the  action  of  the 
Board  Sept.  21,  1847,  in  allowing  Prof.  Mettauer  to  hold  a  con- 
nection with  the  medical  department  of  their  [R.  M.]  institution 
located  in  this  vicinity :  resolved,  that  this  arrangement  was  only 
intended  to  be  permitted  for  one  year. 

*About  1850  the  Board  of  Education  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  made 
great  efforts  to  establish  Schools  and  Colleges  in  different  parts  of  the 
country  under  the  auspices  and  control  of  the  Presbyteries  and  Synods 
of  the  Church.  La  Fayette  and  Washington  Colleges,  in  Pennsylvania, 
were  induced  to  place  themselves  under  the  control  of  the  Synods  within 
whose  bounds  they  were  situated,  and  application  was  made  to  the 
Legislature  of  Pennsylvania  to  alter  their  acts  of  incorporation  to 
enable  the  Synods  to  receive  under  their  care  these  two  colleges. 
No  breach  of  faith  was  involved  in  this  scheme.  Jefferson  College  re- 
sisted similar  pressure.     Dr.  Maclean,  who  became  President  of  Prince- 


136  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1848.   Sept.  15.   J.  P.  Marshall. 

Resolved,  that  the  Board  adhere  to  its  former  orders  in  rela- 
tion to  the  residence  of  Prof.  Mettauer  and  his  connexion  with 
Randolph  Macon  College. 

Prof.  F.  J.  Mettauer,  M.  D.,  resigned  the  office  of  Professor 
of  Chemistry  and  Natural  Philosophy. 

Mr.  A.  G.  Mcllwaine  of  Petersburg  was  elected  a  Trustee  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College. 

1848.  Nov.  10.   Rev.  S.  D.  Stuart. 

F.  N.  Watkins  appointed  Financial  Agent,  to  settle  up  the 
scholarship  account,  at  a  salary  of  $200;  his  subscription  of 
$300  remitted  in  consideration  of  services  rendered. 

Richard  Sterling,  Esqr.,  of  Fredericksburg,  elected  Professor 
of  Chemistry  and  Natural  Philosophy;  committee  to  provide 
for  instruction  until  the  arrival  of  the  Professor. 

Financial  Committee  to  report  to  the  Faculty  the  names  of 
all  persons  to  whom  scrip  for  scholarships  has  been  issued; 
Faculty  to  keep  a  record  of  all  the  incumbents  of  said  scholar- 
ships and  report  annually  to  the  Board. 

1849.  Jan.  10.   S.  C.  Anderson. 

The  President  elect,  the  Rev.  Lewis  W.  Green,  D.  D.,  took 
the  oath  of  office  required  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia, 
and  having  delivered  an  address  before  the  Trustees,  the  stu- 
dents of  the  College,  and  a  large  audience,  he  took  his  seat  as 
a  member  of  the  Board. 

Committee  to  correspond  with  the  other  Colleges  in  Virginia; 
to  take  such  steps  as  may  seem  advisable  in  preparing  and  pre- 
senting memorials  to  the  Legislature  of  Virginia  for  pecuniary 
aid  to  the  Colleges. 

President  Green  added  to  the  Committee  on  Agency. 

The  Trustees  approving  the  intention  of  the  Faculty  to  re- 
quire recitations  of  the  students  on  Saturday  do  decline  grant- 
ing the  request  of  a  portion  of  the  students  this  day  presented. 

Laid  on  the  table  for  future  consideration:    R'esd,  that  the 

ton  about  that  time,  was  absolutely  opposed  to  any  such  direct  control 
of  Colleges  by  the  Church  [See  his,  'Letters  on  the  True  Relations  of 
Church  and  State  to  Schools  and  Colleges'] 

Connected  with  this  change  from  a  close  and  self-perpetuating  corpo- 
ration to  one  the  members  of  which  were  to  be  chosen  by  one  or  more 
synodical  bodies  was  a  plan  of  endowment  by  means  of  cheap  scholar- 
ships. About  1852  both  Washington  and  Jefferson  Colleges,  Pa.,  se- 
cured endowments  in  this  way,  the  one  of  $60,000,  the  other  of  $50,000. 
The  Princeton  plan  was  different,  being  based  on  $1000  scholarships. 
See,  Maclean,  History  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  II,  330-335  J  Higher 
Education  in  Pennsylvania  [Bulletin;  Bureau  of  Education]  p.  245. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        137 

Trustees  will  establish,  when  the  funds  of  the  institution  admit 
it,  a  Chair  of  Agricultural  Chemistry  in  the  College. 

1849.  June  13-14.   Col.  T.  H.  Epes. 

Ordered,  that  Prof.  Martin  be  appointed  Rector  of  the  Pre- 
paratory Department,  with  power  to  nominate  an  assistant  in- 
structor whose  salary  shall  be  $400  and  his  board  at  the  Com- 
mons Hall. 

Committee  on  relocation  of  the  public  road  east  of  the  Col- 
lege buildings  to  contract  for  the  removal  of  the  rubbish  of  the 
building  recently  burnt.1 

Report  of  Committee  on  Agency — 

Agents:  1)   Charles  Martin,  special  contract. 

2)  Rev.  W.  H.  Pollard,  3%  and  expenses;  appointed 

the  fall  of  1847;  nas  procured  60  scholarships. 

3)  Rev.  S.  D.  Stuart,  | 

Rev.  W.  C.  Scott,  >  5%  appointed  Apr.  7,  1848. 
J.  A.  Scott,  ) 

Mr.  Stuart  has  procured  175  scholarships,  al- 
lowing for  adjusted  deductions  from  214. 

4)  Rev.  J.  S.  Armistead  has  procured  38  scholarships, 

commission  adjusted. 

Total  commissions  on  all  footings,  318  scholarships,  $1,485 
[not  including  the  work  of  Prof.  Martin.]2 

Agents  now  appointed:  Dr.  Green,  Rev.  S.  D.  Stuart,  Rev. 
J.  S.  Armistead,  C.  Martin,  Rev.  W.  C.  Scott,  Dr.  S.  L.  Graham, 
and  A.  G.  Mcllwaine — Rev.  William  H.  Foote  [June  14]  ;  at 
3%  and  reasonable  expenses. 

The  two  eastern  rooms  in  the  second  story  of  the  Steward's 
house  to  be  converted  into  a  room  for  the  Grammar  School, 
contract  payable  out  of  funds  subscribed  for  the  purpose. 

Agents  to  endeavor  to  raise  $1,000,  contingent   fund,  mainly 

*This  burnt  building  was  the  old  President's  house,  which  for  some 
fifteen  years  had  been  used  as  a  Professor's  house.  This  house  gone, 
there  was  little  left  of  the  old  group  of  buildings.  There  was  still  a 
remnant,  called  "Rat  Castle,"  standing  on  the  site  of  the  present  brick 
dwelling  north  of  the  College.  The  old  Steward's  hall  seems  to  have 
stood  about  here,  and  the  frame  addition  to  the  brick  house  on  that  site 
is  reported  to  have  been  a  part  of  the  first  steward's  establishment. 
Buildings  rose  and  fell  near  springs  in  the  old  times.  There  were  sev- 
eral good  springs  within  the  compass  of  Johnston's  Gift. 

2Thus,  within  the  two  years,  Professor  Martin  must  have  secured  nearly 
half  the  six  hundred  scholarships  subscribed. 

Mr.  Stuart,  (a  graduate  of  Princeton  Seminary)  at  this  time  pastor 
of  Briery  Church,  Prince  Edward  County,  about  1866  raised  $25,000  for 
Washington   and   Lee,   particularly  in    Baltimore   and    New   York. 

See,  Catalogue  of  Alumni,  Washington  and  Lee  University,  p.  19 


138  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

for  the  purchase  of   apparatus — on   recommendation  of    Prof. 
Sterling. 

1849.   Aug.  23.    [Col.  Epes.] 

Committee  on  sale  of  lands  to  continue  sales— so  much  of  the 
lands  near  Kingsville  as  may  seem  expedient. 

Contract  of  lease  with  Mrs.  King  for  the  Steward's  house. 

$500  allowed  Prof.  Martin,  travelling  expenses  as  agent  during 
the  vacation  while  he  was  agent. 

1849.    June  12-13.    Col.  Epes. 

Thomas  C.  Miller  elected  Steward  [in  the  place  of  Mrs. 
Martha  King,  deceased]  : — rent,  board  of  two  college  servants 
and  a  Tutor,  the  Trustees  and  their  horses  at  their  sessions, 
and  $50  to  be  expended  in  repairs. 

Committee  to  sell  bricks,  posts,  house,  &c.,  remaining  on  the 
old  President's  house  lot  and  premises. 

Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  President's  Message.  Cordial 
approval  expressed  of  the  Act  of  the  General  Assembly  of  Va., 
forbidding  credits  to  students  of  Colleges. 

Uniform  enforcement  ordered  of  the  regulation  for  payment 
of  board  in  advance. 

No  student  in  the  Preparatory  School  to  attend  any  Class  in 
College. 

An  agent  to  be  employed  at  a  salary  of  $80  per  month  to 
prosecute  the  scholarship  fund  scheme.1 

^hat  the  College  had  taken  on  new  life  is  evident  from  the  follow- 
ing Minutes   [Records  of  the  Philanthropic  Society] — 

Jan.  12,  1850 — The  President  then  postponed  the  business  for  the  pur- 
pose of  hearing  the  report  of  the  Committee  who  had  been  appointed  to 
see  into  the  expediency  of  building  a  new  hall.  They  reported  that  they 
had  examined  the  list  of  members  and  found  that  there  were  900  hon- 
orary and  graduate  members,  and  that  of  those  they  had  selected  274 
names  from  whom  something  might  be  expected,  to  aid  in  building  a  new 
hall,  some  they  supposed  would  give  nothing,  but  that  an  average  of 
10  dollars  would  be  sufficient  for  the  erection  of  such  a  building  as  was 
contemplated,  and  that  there  were  80  regular  members  from  whom 
something  might  be  expected,  they  advised  that  the  society  proceed  with 
great  caution.  They  also  reported  that  they  had  formed  no  plan  of  a 
building,  or  no  amount  of  the  cost  but  that  they  had  written  to  Prince- 
ton for  the  plan  of  the  halls  there,  and  when  they  receive  the  desired  in- 
formation they  would  be  able  to  report  with  precision  what  such  a  hall 
would  cost  here.  They  proposed  to  let  the  college  occupy  the  room 
on  the  lower  floor,  it  being  responsible  for  all  damage,  and  that  it 
[second  floor?]  have  not  less  than  two  rooms,  one  for  debate  the  other 
tor  library,  and  as  far  as  they  could  ascertain,  they  thought  the  build- 
ing would  cost  from  $2  to  3000,  not  including  the  furniture  of  the 
rooms.  *  *  *  Resolved  that  said  Committee  [appointed  at  this  meet- 
ing: Messrs.  Graham,  Sterling  and  Branch,  honorary,  and  Messrs.  Dick- 
inson,  Goodwyn,   sen.;   Burwell,  and  Bass,  sen.]   confer  with  a  similar 


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Asa    D.    Dickinson. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         139 

1850.  Dec.  18.   A.  D.  Dickinson. 

A  resignation  of  Prof.  R.  Sterling  of  his  professorship  was 
tendered  and  accepted.  The  Rev.  Joseph  R.  Wilson  was  unani- 
mously elected  to  the  Professorship  made  vacant  by  the  resigna- 
tion of  Richard  Sterling,  Esqr. 

Resolutions  on  the  death  of  Nelson  Page  of  Cumberland. 

1851.  June  11-12.   Henry  E.  Watkins. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Fbote  of  Romney  elected  Trustee.1 

No  dismissed  or  suspended  student  to  return  within  12  miles 
of  the  College. 

The  Curator's  salary  to  be  5%  commission  on  receipts. 

Claim  for  medical  attendance  on  the  servant  Billy  to  be  paid 
out  of  monies  in  the  hands  of  the  Curator  due  for  Billy's  hire. 

An  Act  of  the  Legislature  to  be  procured,  if  practicable, 
securing  the  scholarship  fund  against  loss  from  claims  by  any 
creditor  of  the  College. 

1052  MMPJune  8-10.   S.  C.  Anderson. 

Leave  of  absence  for  18  months  granted  to  Professor  Venable 
to  visit  and  improve  himself  at  the  universities  of  Europe ;  his 
salary  continued,  the  Faculty  offering  to  discharge  the  duties  of 
his  professorship. 

committee  from  the  Union  Society  in  reference  to  the  erection  of  a  hall 
at  the  same  time;  that  they  confer  with  the  trustees  concerning  a  joint 
use  of  the  building  and  a  payment  of  a  part  of  the  expenses  of  erec- 
tion ;  and  also  that  they  enter  into  a  correspondence'  with  the  honorary 
members  in  order  to  ascertain  the  prospect  of  success  in  an  applica- 
tion for  funds.  Proff.  Sterling  moved  that  a  Committee  be  appointed 
to  draw  off  a  perfect  list  of  the  honorary  members  and  regular  mem- 
bers of  this  society  to  be  handed  in  at  the  first  meeting  in  March, 
which  being  carried,  Proff.  Venable,  Meredith,  Holladay,  Fitzgerald, 
Carrington,  and  Morton  were  appointed.  After  which  the  regular 
exercises  were  continued. 

[Bill    for   printing    Alumni    Catalogue    allowed.     Aug.    23,    1850] 
April  26,  1850 — Resolved, 

That  we  deem  it  expedient  to  build  a  new  hall  of  such  a  character  as 
the  committee  for  that  purpose  shall  think  proper. 

That  in  order  to  accomplish  our  purpose  we  deem  it  necessary  to  pub- 
lish in  the  Richmond,  Petersburg,  Lynchburg,  Farmville,  and  N.  Caro- 
lina papers  that  the  members  of  the  P.  Society  will  meet  in  their  hall 
at  1  o'clock  on  the  day  of  the  anniversary  meeting,  for  the  purpose  of 
transacting  important  business. 

*Dr.  Foote  had  been  a  Trustee  of  the  Theological  Seminary  since 
1838.  His  connection  with  these  institutions  was  a  fortunate  event, 
which  led  him  perhaps  (in  his  invaluable  Sketches  of  Virginia)  to  be- 
come the  chief  historian  of  both. 


140  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

On  recommendation  of  the  Rector  [Preparatory  Department] 
B.  C.  White  elected  Tutor,  at  a  salary  of  $500  with  board,  to 
be  paid  as  a  first  charge  on  the  room  rents. 

Motion  to  insure  the  College  buildings  rejected. 

1853.  June  14.1    Col.  Epes. 

Letters  were  read  from  Dr.  S.  Maupin  with  reference  to 
creating  a  new  chair  for  the  Medical  Department  of  H.  S. 
College,  and  nominating  Dr.  Martin  A.  Scott. 

Dr.  Green  appointed  agent,  with  the  Faculty,  for  securing 
$30,000  addition  to  the  permanent  fund,  by  subscriptions,  dona- 
tions, and  scholarships,  subscriptions  not  to  be  obligatory  unless 
$30,000  shall  be  promised  within  two  years  from  Oct.  1,  1853. 
Each  member  of  the  Faculty  acting  as  agent  to  be  allowed  $100 
a  month  and  travelling  expenses  during  the  vacation — after- 
wards a  special  agent  to  be  appointed. 

Dr.  G.  A.  Wilson  elected  to  the  new  chair  in  the  Medical 
Department. 

Board  in  the  Steward's  Hall  raised  to  $10  per  month. 

1853.  Aug.  24.   Col.  J.  P.  Marshall. 

Letters  were  read  from  Drs.  Maupin  and  Tucker,  calling  a 
meeting  of  the  Board — also  a  letter  from  Dr.  G.  A.  Wilson 
with  reference  to  Dr.  Maupin.     Adjournment  until  2  o'clock. 

2  o'clock :  Resolved,  that  the  Medical  Faculty  and  Dr.  Wilson 
be  admitted.  Counsel  for  the  Faculty  granted  leave  to  post- 
pone his  remarks  until  tomorrow  morning  at  9  o'clock. 

Aug.  25. 

Hearing  of  Mr.  Raleigh  T.  Daniel,  counsel  for  the  Medical 
Faculty.     Adjournment  to  2  o'clock. 

2  o'clock:  Personal  explanations  entered  into  and  made  be- 
tween Dr.  Green  and  Dr.  Maupin.     Adjournment. 

Aug.  26. 

Resolutions:  Right  of  election  to  the  Medical  Faculty  is,  and 
always  has  been,  solely  with  the  Board;  Dr.  G.  A.  Wilson  is 
the  legally  elected  Professor  of  Physiology  and  Medical  Juris- 
prudence in  the  Medical  Department  of  Hampden  Sidney 
College;  the  Board  will  treat  (as  it  always  has)  with  great  re- 
spect all  recommendations  on  the  part  of  the  Medical  Faculty. 

10f  the  Class  of  1853  were  President  Mcllwaine,  Professor  Holla- 
day,  and  Dr.  L.  H.  Blanton,  President  of  Central  University,  Kentucky. 
The  student  life  at  Hampden  Sidney  at  that  time  is  most  interestingly 
described  in  Dr.  Mcllwaine's  Reminiscences — Memories  of  Three  Score 
Years  and  Ten.     Washington  1908.     Chapter  IX. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         141 

1854.  Jan.  4.   A.  G.  Mcllwaine. 

Samuel  C.  Anderson  and  William  G.  Flournoy  to  appear  before 
the  Legislature  in  vindication  of  the  Board's  rights — the  Medical 
Faculty  having  applied  to  the  Legislature  for  an  independent 
charter. 


1854.  June  13-15.  A.  G.  Mcllwaine. 

Thanks  tendered  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Armistead,  who  gave  an 
account  of  his  agency  for  the  College. 

The  next  session  to  commence  Sept.  1st,  instead  of  Aug.  15th. 

Appropriation  of  $600  to  be  divided  among  the  four  Pro- 
fessors  in   addition   to   their   salary. 

Minute  adopted  in  regard  to  the  Medical  Faculty :  the  Board 
acquiescent  though  unconvinced;  the  Medical  Department  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College  abolished.1 

1855.  Jan.  25.    Dr.  Armistead. 

A  letter  from  Prof.  Wilson  was  read  resigning  his  professor- 
ship.2 This  chair  to  be  entitled  the  Chair  of  Physical  Science; 
Prof.  Venable  to  be  transferred  to  it,  teaching  also  the  higher 
mathematics. 

Rev.  Dr.  Armistead,  agent  for  the  College,  then  made  his 
report:  'That  in  the  recent  enterprise  more  than  $30,000  (the 
sum  necessary  to  make  the  subscriptions  obligatory)  has  been 
subscribed.'  This  amount  to  be  considered  as  due  and  bearing 
interest  from  Feb.  1,  1855.  Dr.  Armistead  allowed  4  per  cent, 
for  collecting  and  bonding  the  above  named  subscriptions. 

1For  a  discussion  of  the  whole  matter,  See:  Opinions  of  G.  N.  John- 
son and  A.  A.  Morson,  Esqs.,  upon  Questions  concerning  the  Rights  of 
the  Faculty  of  the  Medical  Department  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  to- 
gether with  the  Reply  of  the  same  Faculty  to  the  Memorial  of  the 
Twenty-two  Physicians,  &c.    Richmond :  Elliot  and  Nye,  1853,  pp.  53.  8  vo. 

Among  the  documents  is  a  letter  from  Dr.  John  W.  Draper  to  Dr. 
Socrates  Maupin,  dated  University,  New  York,  July  29,  1853:  "You  are 
right  in  supposing  that  the  negotiations  for  the  establishment  of  your 
College  were  for  the  most  part  conducted  through  me.  *  *  *  The 
intention  of  the  parties  was  that  the  power  should  be  virtually  in  the 
Medical  Faculty.  *  *  *  My  recollection  of  these  arrangements  is 
clear,  because  at  the  organization  of  the  medical  department  of  this 
University,  which  took  place  soon  after,  and  in  which  I  was  the  chief 
negotiator,  the  same  principles  were  introduced,  the  example  of  the 
Richmond   school   being  constantly   before   us." 

2Dr.  Joseph  R.  Wilson  no  doubt  left  Hampden  Sidney  in  the  summer 
of  1855.  A  few  months  later  his  son,  Woodrow  Wilson  (President  of 
Princeton  University,  Governor  of  New  Jersey,  &c),  was  born,  at 
Staunton,   Augusta   County. 


142  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1855.  June  12-14.   Dr.  Wm.  S.  Morton. 

A  letter  from  Prof.  Venable,  expressing  his  desire  to  retain 
his  former  position  of  Professor  of  Mathematics  rather  than 
to  be  transferred  to  the  Chair  of  Physical  Science. 

Lewis  L.  Holladay  was  elected  to  the  Chair  of  Physical 
Science. 

Walter  Blair  elected  Tutor  for  one  year.  Messrs  Stuart  and 
Hoge  a  committee  to  consider  the  improving  the  College  build- 
ings and  grounds. 

Price  of  board  to  be  $12. 

Messrs.  Hoge  and  Southall  and  President  Green  a  committee 
to  reorganize  the  Society  of  Alumni  and  procure  a  speaker  who 
shall  represent  them  at  the  next  commencement.1 

1855.  Dec.  19.   Col.  Marshall. 

Professor  Venable  resigns:  resignation  to  take  effect  Jan.  13th,. 
1856.2  Professor  Venable  offers  to  return  the  salary  paid  him 
while  he  was  in  Europe:    Board  declines  to  accept. 

Messrs.  S.  C.  Anderson,  Thornton,  Southall,  and  Dickinson  a 
committee  to  represent  this  Board  in  the  Legislature  on  the 
subject  of  getting  aid  to  the  College. 

Dr.  Green  to  grant  the  petition  offered  by  the  students  for 
1   week's  vacation  during  the  Christmas  holidays. 

1856.  June  24.   Col.  Marshall. 

Committee  to  confer  with  Dr.  Green  and  express  their  earnest 
desire  that  he  should  remain  in  his  present  position;  Board  re- 
gards his  continuance  as  vitally  important. 

Salaries  guaranteed:  to  the  President  $1,500;  to  each  of  the 
Professors   $1,000. 

1There  was  an  active  Alumni  Association  in  1840 — See  Minutes,  Union 
Society,  Aug.  29,  1840 — 'William  H.  McFarland,  Alumni  Association 
orator  for  the  present  year,  elected  to  honorary  membership'  [Mr.  Mc- 
Farland, President  of  the  Farmers  Bank  of  Virginia,  had  been  a  member 
of  the  Philanthropic  Society  when  a  student  at  the  College]. 

The  Alumni  Associations  at  both  Harvard  and  Yale  were  organized 
about  1840.  The  earliest  Society  of  the  kind  seems  to  have  been  that 
at  Williams  College,  1821. 

2Charles  Scott  Venable  was  born  in  Prince  Edward  County,  April 
19,  1827;  A.  B.,  Hampden  Sidney  College,  1842;  of  the  Faculty  of  the 
College  during  a  period  of  fourteen  years;  Professor  of  Natural 
Philosophy,  University  of  Georgia,  of  Mathematics  and  Astronomy, 
University  of  South  Carolina;  Colonel,  C.  S.  A.,  and  a.  d.  c,  General 
Lee;  Professor  of  Mathematics,  University  of  Virginia,  1865-1896;  author 
of  a  series  of  mathematical  text  books;  d.  Aug.  11,  1900  [See  Kaleido- 
scope, IX,  28-40,  article  by  William  M.  Thornton]. 


Lewis  W.  Green. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         143 

1856.    Aug.  5.    Mr.  Comfort. 

A  letter  was  read  from  Dr  .Green  resigning  his  seat  as 
President  of  the  College — which  resignation  was  accepted  as 
taking  effect  from  the  1st  of  September  next,  and 

On  motion,  a  committee  of  three,  to  wit,  Messrs.  Stuart, 
Berkeley,  and  Anderson  were  appointed  to  express  to  Dr.  Green 
the  feelings  and  sentiments  of  the  Board  in  reference  to  his 
leaving  the  College — 'they  feel  it  due  to  themselves  to  express 
their  high  appreciation  of  his  able,  self-sacrificing,  and  success- 
ful administration.'1 

1856.  Aug.  21.   Mr.  Comfort. 

The  order  of  the  day  was  taken  up,  which  was  to  elect  a 
President  of  the  College.  The  following  gentlemen  were  nomi- 
nated, to  wit,  Messrs.  M.  D.  Hoge,  J.  H.  Bocock,  C.  S.  Venable, 
A.  L.  Holladay,  and  T.  V.  Moore,  and  after  ballotings  being 
made,  the  Rev.  A.  L.  Holladay  was  declared  unanimously 
elected.2 

aDr.  Green  returned  to  Kentucky,  becoming  President  of  Transyl- 
vania University  (State  Normal  School),  dying  in  1863,  President  of 
Centre   College. 

Dr.  Joseph  R.  Wilson,  who  had  been  a  student  under  Dr.  Green  at 
Alleghany  Seminary  and  was  his  colleague  at  Hampden  Sidney,  wrote  of 
him : — "Surely  there  never  was  a  more  admirable  teacher.  His  scholar- 
ship was  as  profound  and  as  comprehensive  as  it  was  minute  and  exact. 
His  whole  method  of  imparting  knowledge,  his  skill  in  drawing  out  the 
utmost  resources  of  his  pupils,  his  enthusiasm  in  dealing  with  truth,  the 
impression  he  made  on  his  classes  of  an  equal  greatness  of  mind  and 
heart,  his  flowing  geniality,  mingled  with  all  the  elements  of  needful 
authority,  rendered  the  hours  of  recitation  wonderfully  pleasant  and 
profitable.  *  *  *  No  college  president  ever  enjoyed  a  purer  fame. 
The  fact  is  undeniable  that  Dr.  Green  was  a  really  great  man,  and 
had  his  bodily  health  been  as  robust  as  his  mental  energies  were  strong, 
he  would  have  become  illustrious.  As  it  was,  he  left  behind  him  in 
Virginia  a  name  free  from  blemish,  and  for  commanding,  positive  excel- 
lence well  deserving  of  being  held  in  grateful  remembrance.  The  cause 
of  education  in  the  old  Commonwealth  will  forever  remain  his  debtor. 
[Memoir,     By  L.  J.  Halsey,  New  York,  1871,  pp.  33,  50.] 

2The  Rev.  M.  D.  Hoge,  D.  D.  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees;  the 
Rev.  John  H.  Bocock.  D.  D.,  a  graduate  of  Amherst  College,  1835;  in 
1856  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Harrisonburg,  Va.,  later 
pastor  of  the  Bridge  Street  Church,  Georgetown,  D.  C. ;  d.  1872; 
Professor  Venable,  recently  of  the  College;  the  Rev.  Albert  L.  Holladay, 
sometime  a  Professor  in  the  College,  a  missionary  in  Persia  (1836-1849)  ; 
in  1856  pastor  of  a  church  near  Charlottesville,  Va. ;  the  Rev.  T.  V. 
Moore,  D.  D.,  a  graduate  of  Dickinson  College,  1838;  in  1856  pastor  of 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  Richmond,  Va.,  and  Editor  of  the  Central 
Presbyterian;  d.   1871. 


144      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1856.  Nov.  7.   Dr.  Armistead. 

Death  of  President-elect  Holladay — 'Our  church  in  Virginia 
and  Virginia  herself  has  occasion  to  deplore  the  loss  of  one 
whose  simplicity  and  purity  of  character,  whose  gentleness  and 
dignity  of  manner,  whose  ripe  and  elegant  scholarship,  and 
whose  attractive  and  mature  piety  entitled  him  to  the  reverential 
love  of  all  to  whom  the  interests  of  learning  and  religion  are 
dear.' 

The  Rev.  Moses  D.  Hoge  was  elected  President  [Declined 
Jan.  16,  1857]. 

1857.  May  11.   Col.  Epes. 

The  election  of  President  was  taken  up,  and  after  several 
nominations  were  made  and  four  ballotings  the  Rev.  John  M.  P. 
Atkinson  was  declared  unanimously  elected. 

1857*.   June  9.    Dr.  Morton. 

Dr.  Dabney  and  Prof.  Martin  were  invited  to  sit  with  the 
Board  during  its  present  session. 

Rev.  Mr.  Atkinson  appeared  in  the  Board,  after  some  con- 
ference accepted  his  appointment  and  took  the  oath  prescribed 
by  law.1 

By  invitation,  Prof.  Martin  was  called  on,  and  gave  an  account 
of  the  state  of  the  College  in  the  interregnum. 

Prof.  Martin  and  Capt.  Perkinson  to  ascertain  the  rights  of 
persons  holding  scholarships,  and  make  such  a  report  as  will 
guide  the  faculty  in  the  admission  of  students  under  these 
rights. 

Dr.  Hoge  was  invited  to  assist  the  President-elect  in  conduct- 
ing the  Commencement  exercises. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Mcllwaine  the  College  buildings  were  in- 
sured to  the  amount  of  $10,000. 

Committee  to  draw  up  and  present  to  the  Board  a  report  with 
reference  to  the  late  tragedy  in  the  College,  to  wit,  the  murder  of 
Charles  T.  Edie  by  E.  A.  Langhorne.2 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Armistead  to  continue  as  agent  of  the  College, 

President  Atkinson  was  born  in  1817  in  Dinwiddie  County;  graduated 
at  Hampden  Sidney  College  in  1835,  at  Union  Theological  Seminary  in 
1838,  and  at  Princeton  Seminary  in  1840;  was  a  missionary  in  Texas  for 
a  year,  pastor  of  the  Warrenton,  Va.,  Presbyterian  Church,  and  of  the 
Bridge  Street  Church,  Georgetown,  D.  C;  C.  S.  A.,;  died  Aug.  28,  1883. 
[See  Memorial  Address,  by  William  M.  Thornton,  Petersburg,  1900]. 

2Langhorne's  mind  was  perhaps  disordered.  A  trifling  dispute,  some- 
thing about  a  girl's  handkerchief,  led  to  the  stabbing,  which  happened 
just  within  the  entrance  to  Fourth  Passage,  Jan.  27,   1857. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        145 

for  the  increase  of  the  permanent  and  contingent  funds  by  sub- 
scriptions and  donations. 

1858.  June  8.    Dr.  Morton. 

No  student  to  matriculate  until  he  shall  produce  satisfactory 
evidence  that  he  has  paid  his  board  for  the  half  session  in 
advance. 

Col.  Henry  Stokes  and  T.  T.  Tredway,  Esqr.  elected  Trustees. 

Drs.  Armistead  and  Atkinson,  committee  for  the  purpose  of 
increasing  the  funds,  continued  with  instructions  to  suspend 
applications  for  $100  scholarships. 

Walter  Blair  elected  Adjunct  Professor  of  Languages,  at 
$600;  to  be  advanced  according  to  the  funds  to  $800. 

1859.  June  14-15.   Samuel  C.  Anderson. 

On  motion  of  Mcllwaine  a  committee  was  appointed  to  report 
to  this  meeting  some  scheme  for  a  more  enlarged  endowment 
of  the  College.  Messrs.  Mcllwaine  and  Perkinson,  and  Drs. 
Atkinson,  Hoge,  and  Watkins  were  appointed  this  committee.1 

'In  order  to  preserve  the  dignity  and  decorum  becoming  in  a 
literary  institution,  the  Board  of  Trustees  have  committed  to 
the  Faculty  and  require  them  to  maintain  the  controul  of  all 
assemblages,  amusements,  and  exercises  of  the  College  on  public 
days  and  throughout  the  session,  and  that  no  gathering  or 
pastime  be  permitted  without  their  consent.' 

Messrs  Stuart,  Comfort,  and  Booth,  a  committee  to  consider 
the  subject  of  building  rooms  on  College  grounds  for  the  ac- 
commodation of  students. 

Report  of  Committee  of  Ways  and  Means — Believing  that 
the  time  is  approaching  when  an  effort  on  a  larger  scale  than 
has  heretofore  been  attempted,  must  be  made  to  place  this 
College  on  a  foundation  demanded  by  the  character  and  neces- 
sities of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Virginia — Inasmuch  as 
experience  proves  that  it  is  easier  to  raise  a  sum  sufficiently 
large  to  accomplish  a  great  end,  than  a  small  one  which  will 
not  meet  the  exigency,  we  will  adopt  a  scheme  for  raising  not  less 
than  $100,000. 

Scheme:  one  class  of  subscribers  to  give  on  condition  that 
$50,000  be  raised;  another  class  to  give  $10,  or  any  amount, 
for  each  $10,000  secured,  subscriptions  counting  towards  the 
several  $10,000.    Those  who  prefer  to  invest  in  scholarships  may 

'The  statement  drawn  up  by  this  committee  has  been  preserved  in  the 
Hampden  Sidney  Magazine,  Vol.  II,  329-331  (October,  i860).  The  first 
number  of  the  Magazine  appeared  January,  1859.  The  first  two  volumes, 
published  by  the  Literary  Societies,  were  of  a  very  high  order  of  college 
journalism.     The  third  volume   was   unfortunately  delayed  until   1884. 


146  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

do  so — $500  a  perpetual  scholarship;  $100,  tuition  of  a  son,  or 
sons,  or  of  a  nominee  for  twenty  years. 

The  Chair  of  Ancient  Languages  to  be  divided — Prof.  Martin, 
Greek;  Prof.  Blair,  Latin. 

Petition  from  Union  Society  granted — for  leave  to  fit  room 
No.  22  as  a  room  for  their  Librarian. 

[This  circular,  published  in  the  Magazine  for  October,  i860,, 
brings  out  a  few  of  the  difficulties  experienced  after  ten  years 
of  the  scholarships  plan.  There  is  no  question  that  the  plan 
was  at  the  time  a  necessary  one — 

"Whilst  the  number  of  our  students  has  increased,  there  has 
not  been,  from  the  nature  of  the  case  there  could  not  be,  a 
corresponding  increase  in  the  number  of  our  professors.  For 
years  past  not  a  dollar  has  come  into  our  treasury  from  tuition 
fees,  and  whilst  the  use  of  scholarships  can  be  secured  at  a 
merely  nominal  sum,  it  is  evident  that  nothing  can  be  expected 
£  from  this  source.  Except  from  room-rents,  the  income  of  the 
Institution  has  been  about  the  same  with  one  hundred  and 
thirty-five  students  as  if  the  matriculates  reached  only  the  fifth 
or  the  tenth  of  that  number.  Indeed,  without  an  addition  to  our 
permanent  fund,  we  must  look  for  a  reduction  instead  of  an 
increase  of  our  corps  of  instructors.  The  proceeds  of  the 
scholarship  fund  afford  a  meagre  support  to  only  four  teachers, 
while,  for  a  long  time  past,  the  services  of  five  have  been  im- 
peratively demanded.  In  these  circumstances  the  only  recourse 
of  the  trustees  was  to  appropriate  the  sum  derived  from  room 
rents  to  the  support  of  a  tutor  or  an  assistant  professor.  This, 
therefore,  has  been  done,  and  a  fund,  the  natural  direction  of 
which  would  be  the  repair  of  the  buildings  of  the  Institution, 
has  been  devoted  to  increasing  the  number  of  its  instructors. 
The  consequences  of  this  policy  have  been  such  as  might  have 
been  anticipated.  While  the  students  of  the  College  have  been 
the  recipients  of  an  amount  of  professional  care  and  assistance 
beyond  what  they  had  the  right  to  expect,  the  buildings  and  en- 
closures have  fallen  into  disrepair,  and  the  grounds  exhibit  none 
of  those  attractions  which  the  judicious  expenditure  of  a  few 
hundred  dollars  would  secure.  Nor  is  this  all.  Debts  con- 
tracted for  repairs  of  urgent  and  immediate  necessity  have  re- 
mained unpaid  until  the  patience  of  our  creditors  has  been 
exhausted,  and  we  have  only  been  saved  from  a  suit  at  law  by 
the  liberaltiy  of  friends  who  have  advanced  the  money  to  meet 
our  most  pressing  liabilities.  But  this  state  of  things  cannot 
last  long.  Either  an  important  addition  must  very  soon  be  made 
to  our  funds  or  we  must  consent  to  lose  the  services  of  our 
fifth  professor — a  gentleman  from  whose  connection  with  the 
College   we   have   expected   the   most   important   benefits.     We 


Travis  H.  Epe; 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         147 

must  continue  in  debt  till  the  room  rents  yield  a  sufficient  sum 
to  pay  off  our  liabilities,  and  meanwhile  the  real  estate  of  the 
College  must  be  constantly  falling  into  worse  condition.  In 
such  circumstances  can  the  Institution  continue  to  advance? 
*  *  *  Now,  to  avoid  these  evils,  and  to  secure  on  the  other 
hand,  as  far  as  they  can  secure  it,  a  higher  prosperity  to  the 
college  than  she  has  ever  enjoyed — the  Board  of  Trustees  have 
resolved  to  raise  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  toward  the  full 
endowment  of  the  College.  Every  dollar  of  the  principal  of 
this  sum  is  to  be  invested  in  the  safest  securities  and  the  income 
is  to  be  devoted  to  the  support  of  the  Institution.  By  the 
liberality  of  a  few  individuals  and  with  very  little  effort  to 
obtain  their  contributions,  a  considerable  part  of  this  sum  has 
already  been  pledged;  but  to  secure  the  whole  it  will  evidently 
be  necessary  to  invoke  the  aid  of  the  friends  of  the  Institution 
and  of  sound  learning  in  every  part  of  the  field  of  our  opera- 
tions. To  gain  a  favorable  response  we  believe  that  it  will  only 
be  necessary  to  bring  before  the  minds  of  the  people  the  urgency 
of  the  case  and  the  greatness  of  the  benefits  which  may  be 
expected  from  the  success  of  our  effort.  Let  this  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars  be  raised — what  consequences  may  we  naturally 
anticipate?  The  income  of  the  College  more  than  doubled,  the 
faculty  can  be  greatly  enlarged,  while  the  salaries  of  its  individ- 
ual members  may  be  increased — the  College  buildings  and 
grounds  will  be  repaired  and  beautified,  and  as  the  result  of  all 
this  at  no  distant  day  our  students  will  reach  twice  their  present 
number.  And  to  our  whole  State,  especially  to  that  part  of  the 
State  in  which  the  College  is  placed,  the  benefit  would  be  incal- 
culable. It  is  to  education  as  a  means  of  State  influence  and  an 
element  of  State  prosperity,  that  the  attention  of  Virginia  should 
be  most  earnestly  directed.  No  man  can  intelligently  consider 
our  peculiar  circumstances  of  local  position,  climate,  health, 
historic  associations,  and  the  multitudinous  ties  which  bind  to 
the  old  mother  of  states  her  daughters  of  the  South  and  South- 
west without  seeing  that  it  is  in  the  power  of  Virginia  to  become 
the  great  educational  state  of  the  South  and  of  the  Union.  The 
influence  of  her  University  has  tended  and  is  tending  powerfully 
to  this  result.  But  the  influence  of  the  University  is  not  suffi- 
cient of  itself  and  alone  to  secure  the  wished-for  end.  It  must 
be  supplemented  by  the  influence  of  colleges — colleges  of  the 
highest  rank,  or  Virginia  can  never  perform  the  whole  work 
to  which  she  is  called,  informing  the  minds  and  the  hearts  of  the 
young  men  of  America.  Do  not  the  past  and  the  present  of 
Hampden  Sidney  point  her  out  as  at  least  equally,  with  any 
of  her  sisters,  the  hope  of  the  State  in  the  attainment  of  this 
great  object? 


148  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Upon  the  grounds  thus  far  considered,  the  duty  of  support- 
ing Hampden  Sidney  might  be  urged  with  equal  force  upon 
any  citizen  of  the  Commonwealth,  at  least  of  that  portion  of 
the  State  in  which  she  is  placed.  But  upon  the  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Virginia  she  certainly  has  peculiar  claims.  Though 
not  formally,  she  is  and  ever  has  been  virtually  a  Presbyterian 
College. 

J.  M.  P.  Atkinson, 

M.  D.  Hoge, 

A.  G.  Mcllwaine, 

T.  E.  Perkinson, 

F.  B.  Watkins,  M.  D., 

T.  T.  Tredway, 

Committee.] 

1860.  June  12.    Dr.  Morton. 

A.  D.  Dickinson  authorized  to  sell  a  corner  of  land  opposite 
King's  Old  Tavern. 

Robert  M.  Booker  elected  Steward,  on  lease.  President 
authorized  to  borrow  $2,000 — demands  of  contingent  fund  now 
pressing. 

Committee  of  Ways  and  Means  much  encouraged — more  than 
$12,000  pledged — expedient  to  suspend  offering  scholarships — 
propriety  urged  of  again  seeking  aid  of  the  Legislature — Agents 
allowed  5%  and  necessary  travelling  expenses — Dr.  Atkinson, 
acting  as  agent,  to  be  allowed  5%,  and  expenses,  in  addition  to 
salary.  The  College  to  be  covered  with  tin,  if  funds  are 
available. 

1861.  Aug.  6.  S.  C.  Anderson. 

'Under  the  special  circumstances  in  which  the  last  Senior 
Class  of  College  was  placed  at  the  close  of  the  session,  it  was 

Resolved,  That  without  requiring  attendance  at  the  college, 
we  permit  the  members  who  failed  to  stand  their  examinations, 
to  receive  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts  whenever  they  shall 
present  certificates  from  the  several  Professors  that  they  have 
passed  the  examinations  in  their  respective  departments.' 

'On  motion  of  Dr.  Watkins, 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  of  Trustees,  most  heartily  approve 
of  the  course  adopted  by  the  President  and  Professor  Martin 
in  offering  their  services  in  the  defence  of  their  country.  Re- 
solved further,  That  the  Board  highly  approve  the  course  of 
the  President  in  forming  and  heading  a  volunteer  company  of 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        149 

the  students,  from  this  institution,  and  that  both  he  and  the 
students  are  entitled  to  our  high  consideration  and  approval/1 

The  Steward  granted  leave  to  keep  at  the  Steward's  hall  a 
fruit  and  confectionery  store,  subject  to  the  supervision  of  the 
President  and  Professors. 

Committee  to  provide  for  'the  instruction  of  the  students 
of  the  College,  during  the  absence  of  a  part  of  our  Professors 
in  the  military  defence  of  the  country;  with  authority  to  engage 
any  additional  aid,  upon  the  application  of  the  remaining  Pro- 
fessors, as  in  the  judgment  of  the  committee  may  be  necessary: 
and  that  the  compensation  therefor  be  made  out  of  the  salary  of 
the  President/ 

Dr.  Atkinson  continued  as  agent  of  the  College. 

Professor  Blair  allowed  to  remain  another  year  in  Europe. 

Committee  authorized  to  employ  additional  instructors  was 
also  empowered  to  procure  military  instructors  for  the  time 
being,  if  practicable. 

[Oct.  1,  1861 — John  W.  Jackson  of  Fluvanna  Co.2  appointed 
military  instructor  for  the  session:  salary,  fees  from  his  classes.] 

H^he  services  of  this  company  of  Hampden  Sidney  Boys  were  brief. 
The  company  was  mustered  in  early  in  May,  1861 :  Officers, — President 
Atkinson,  captain;  John  W.  Jackson,  first  lieutenant;  Robt.  G.  Temple, 
second  lieutenant;  Tazewell  M.  McCorkle,  third  lieutenant;  W.  W.  Page, 
orderly  sergeant.  At  Richmond,  the  company  was  attached  to  the 
Twentieth  Virginia,  Col.  John  Pegram.  Orders  were  to  join  the  com- 
mand of  General  Garnett  at  Laurel  Hill,  Pendleton  Co.  Arriving  at 
Laurel  Hill,  Col.  Pegram's  regiment  was  sent  to  Rich  Mountain,  about 
twenty  miles  off.  Communication  between  the  two  posts  was  cut  off. 
General  McClellan  attacked  both  simultaneously,  and  with  an  over- 
whelming force.  Col.  Pegram  surrendered  July  n,  1861.  General 
McClellan  treated  Captain  Atkinson  and  his  company  with  great  courtesy. 
Lieutenant  McCorkle  said,  "The  Captain  possessed  the  highest  qualifica- 
tions of  a  soldier,  but  lacked  the  thorough  military  training."  See 
articles  in  Kaliedoscope,    1894,    1906,    1909,   etc.,   etc. 

Afterwards  the  students  of  the  College  formed  another  company,  of 
which  Dr.  Atkinson  was  again  Captain.  This  company  was  under  the 
command  of  General  Kemper,  along  with  all  the  reserve  forces  of  the 
state,  but  were  not  at  any  time  continuously  in  the  field.  They  'were 
ordered  out  to  meet  all  raiding  parties  that  had  in  view  the  destruction 
of  the  railroads  and  in  other  ways  cut  off  the  supplies  shipped  to  Gen. 
Lee's  army  from  the  Southwest.  They  were  sometimes  in  camp  two  or 
three  weeks  at  a  time,  but  never  had  anything  more  than  skirmishing  in 
the  way  of  fighting.' 

[Statement  of  George   B.   Morton,   Class  of   1867.] 

From  the  figures  given  in  the  General  Catalogue,  between  four  and 
five  hundred  of  the  alumni  of  the  College  were  in  the  Confederate  army; 
nearly  a  hundred  died  in  service. 

2Jackson  was  first  lieutenant  of  the  College  Company,  which  was  cap- 
tured at  Rich  Mountain;  he  had  had  military  training  before  the  war, 
perhaps  at  the  Virginia  Military  Institute. 


150      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1862.   June  11-12.   Colin  Stokes.   Dr.  Armistead. 

Mr.  Tredway  made  his  report  as  Chairman  of  the  committee 
to  recommend  military  instruction,  and  asked  a  continuance  of 
the  same  for  another  year,  which  was  granted. 

A  salary  of  $750  appropriated  to  Mr.  Wm.  Caruthers  as 
Professor  of  Mathematics,  pro  tern,  [vice  Prof.  Snyder,  re- 
signed Oct.  1,  1861.] 

On  motion  of  Dr.  Watkins,  it  was  Resolved,  That  the  Board 
of  Trustees  have  a  right  to  change  the  investment  of  the  College 
funds  from  State  or  United  States  bonds  to  Confederate  States 
bonds.     (All  voting  in  the  affirmative  except  Dr.  Berkeley.) 

On  motion,  Resolved,  That  a  committee  consisting  of  the 
Treasurer  and  Mr.  A.  G.  Mcllwaine  be  instructed  to  sell  the 
whole  fund  of  Va.  State  bonds,  and  $500  of  Southside  Railroad 
stock,  and  invest  the  same  and  other  monies  that  may  in  a 
short  time  be  collected,  in  Confederate  States  bonds — Provided 
that  on  farther  examination  of  the  subject,  it  shall  not  appear 
to  them  inexpedient  to  change  the  character  of  the  fund.'1 

Drs.  Atkinson,  Foote,  and  John  H.  Bocock  requested  to  act 
as  agents — at  5%  allowance  on  amounts  collected,  and  travelling 
expenses. 

'Whereas  the  Board  of  Trustees  having  been  informed  that 
Professor  Blair  has  tendered  his  resignation  as  a  member  of 
the  Faculty  with  the  view  of  volunteering  to  fight  in  the  Con- 
federate army  in  defence  of  our  liberties — Therefore,  Resolved 
unanimously  that  in  the  opinion  of  this  Board  the  interest  of 
the  country  will  best  be  promoted  by  Professor  Blair's  retaining 
his  connection  with  Hampden  Sidney,  and  therefore  we  decline 
to  receive  his  resignation. 

Resolved  further,  That  in  the  event  of  Prof.  Blair's  decision 
to  decline  entering  upon  his  official  duties  at  present,  the  Board 
grant  him  leave  of  absence  during  such  a  period  as  Mr.  Blair 
may  feel  his  duties  and  obligations  call  him  in  the  army.'2 

^he  statement  is  made  that  Treasurer  Perkinson  got  the  College 
bonds  together,  put  them  into  his  saddle-bags,  and  rode  to  Petersburg  to 
consult  with  Mr.  Mcllwaine,  whose  decision  was  that  it  appeared  inex- 
pedient to  change  the  character  of  the  fund.  Mr.  Mcllwaine  was  a  man 
of  large  business  and  his  advice  was  often  of  great  value. 

2Professor  Blair  returned  from  Germany  during  the  war,  and  served 
to  the  end,  in  Cabell's  Battalion,  Richmond  Howitzers,  Army  of  North-i 
ern  Virginia.  Professor  Martin,  a  native  of  Vermont,  entered  the  war 
as  a  member  of  a  Prince  Edward  Cavalry  Company,  which  became  Co. 
:K,  Third  Virginia;  honorably  discharged  in  1862  for  physical  disability, 
serving  in  local  organizations  until  the  end  of  the  war.  Professor  Holla- 
:day  for  a  time  was  engaged  in  manufacturing  nitrates  in  North  Carolina, 
'for  use  in  gun-powder.  Professor  Snyder,  born  in  Frederick  Co., 
Virginia,  and  educated  in  Pennsylvania,  resigned  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Svar,  being  a  Union  man. 


A.  G.  McIlwAine. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         151 

1863.  June  9-11.  Colin  Stokes. 

'On  motion  of  Col.  Epes  it  was  Resolved,  that  we  the  Board 
of  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sydney  College  will  give  tuition  in  the 
College  proper  to  all  young  men  maimed  in  the  present  war,  and 
to  the  sons  of  such  as  are  killed  in  the  prosecution  of  the  same/ 

The  committee  for  changing  the  investment  of  the  College 
funds,   on   its   application   was   discontinued. 

The  Treasurer  empowered  at  his  discretion  to  change  the 
$5000  call  Confederate  bond  into  7  per  cent.  Confederate  b&nds. 

The  President  and  Trustees  will  cheerfully  accept  funds  the 
interest  of  which  to  be  applied  to  the  fees  other  than  tuition  of 
men  maimed  during  the  present  war  or  the  sons  of  men  killed  in 
the  service  of  the  country;  provided  that  when  the  specific 
purposes  for  which  such  funds  are  given  shall  have  been  an- 
swered, the  funds  shall  vest  in  the  Trustees  absolutely. 

Fees  ordered :  Tuition  $60. 

Room  rent  $20. 
Contingencies  $15. 
Deposit   $10. 

A  Professorship  to  be  now  created  'to  be  called  the  Chair  of 
Modern  Languages,  and  the  occupant  of  that  chair  to  be  required 
to  teach  the  military  drill  i1  such  chair  to  be  filled  as  soon  as 
the  services  of  the  Professor  shall  be  required  in  the  institution/ 

1864.  Apr.  16.   S.  C.  Anderson. 

A  committee  was  appointed  to  memorialize  the  Confederate 
Congress  on  the  subject  of  exempting  the  funds  of  the  College, 
and  of  the  Libraries  of  the  Literary  Societies  connected  there- 
with, from  taxation.  And  that  said  memorial  be  forwarded  to 
our  Representatives  in  Congress.2 

Mr.  A.  D.  Dickinson,  Dr.  Atkinson,  and  Dr.  Watkins  were 
appointed  a  committee  to  present  said  memorial. 

1864.    June  14.    Colin  Stokes. 

The  question  of  appointing  a  Professor  of  Modern  Languages 
was  discussed  and  for  the  present  postponed. 

lrThis  was  an  opportunity  which  Col.  Louis  Gasperi,  Teacher  of  French, 
Italian  and  Spanish  in  1826-27,  might  have  seized  to  advantage.  As  was 
becoming  in  an  institution  due  somewhat  to  Scotland,  there  was  provision 
made  at  Hampden  Sidney  for  French,  at  least,  almost  from  the  first. 
There  was  no  fixed  policy  regarding  the  Modern  Languages  until  1871, 
a  special  tuition  fee  for  each  language  being  charged  until  1880. 

2"The  Chair  laid  before  the  House  the  memorial  of  the  president  and 
trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College,  asking  a  modification  of  the  tax 
law;  which  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Ways  and  Means" — 
Journal,  House  of  Representatives,  Confederate  Congress,  May  19,  1864. 
[Senate  Doc,  Vol.  31,  p.  79 — 58th  Congress,   2d  Session]. 


i52  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

'On  motion,  the  Board  adjourned  till  Sy2  o'C  tomorrow — 
and  at  that  hour  in  consequence  of  the  expected  raid  of  the 
public  enemy,1  the  Board  adjourned  to  meet  at  the  call  of  the 
President.' 

1864.  July  26-27.   Dr.  Watkins. 

'On  motion  of  Dr.  Atkinson,  Resolved,  that  the  Secretary 
of  War  be  requested  to  exempt  from  military  service  during 
the  ensuing  session  such  students  of  H.  S.  College  as  shall  be- 
come seventeen  years  of  age  in  the  course  of  the  session.2 

Resolved  2d,  that  Rev.  M.  D.  Hoge  be  requested  to  present 
this  petition  to  the  Secretary  of  War.' 

The  Treasurer  empowered  to  sell  or  retain  the  coupons  on 
the  cotton  bonds  belonging  to  the  College. 

The  preparatory  school  to  be  taught  the  ensuing  year  by  such 
members  of  the  Faculty  as  are  willing  to  engage  in  it. 

The  College  servant  has  made  contracts  as  a  freeman. 

The  Faculty  of  the  College  authorized  to  employ  a  Professor 
of  Modern  Languages  for  the  ensuing  session;  the  tuition  for 
modern  languages  to  be  $100  for  each  language;  in  conference 
with  the  candidate  for  Professor  of  Modern  Languages  the 
Faculty  distinctly  to  inform  him  that  he  must  depend  upon  the 
the  tuition  fees  for  salary. 

The  President  directed  to  publish  in  at  least  two  newspapers 
of  extensive  circulation  a  full  advertisement  of  the  institution 
for  the  next  collegiate  year. 

On  motion,  the  tuition  and  other  fees  are  increased  this  year 
to  double  of  what  they  were  last  year. 

Dr.  Atkinson  to  be  the  sole  agent  of  the  College  in  collecting 
subscriptions,  with  the  power  to  appoint  sub-agents  during  the 
collegiate  year  ensuing. 

1This  rumor  of  war  no  doubt  came  from  Campbell  County  immediately 
to  the  west. — See  Official  Records  of  the  Union  and  Confederate  Armies. 
'Series  I,  Vol.  XXXVII,   Part  I,  p.  156: 
'    [Telegram.] 

Lynchburg,  June  14,  1864,  8:38  A.  M. 
'  I  am  here  with  2,000  cavalry.  Ewing's  main  column,  about  15,000 
strong.  General  Duffie,  with  4,000  men,  is  in  Amherst.  I  am  arranging 
to  attack  him  to-day.  A  marauding  party,  not  over  300,  forded  James 
River  eight  miles  below  here  last  night,  and  burnt  Concord  Depot,  on 
South  Side  Railroad,  and  went  on  to  Campbell  Court  House.  I  have  sent 
detachment  in  pursuit. 

J.  D.  Imboden, 

'    General  Braxton  Bragg.  [Brigadier-General] 

8cf.  Minutes,  Philanthropic  Society,  June  13,  1813:  'Subject  of  next 
'debate,  Whether  the  late  act  of  the  legislature  of  this  State  repealing  the 
law  which  exempted  students  of  publick  seminaries  from  mustering  is: 
commendable   or  not/ 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         155 

1865.  July  18.  Col.  Marshall. 

The  agent  (Dr.  Atkinson)  authorized  to  settle  unpaid  sub- 
scriptions as  he  might  think  best,  and  to  convert  into  money  any 
commodities  he  may  receive. 

The  President  authorized  to  negotiate  a  loan  sufficient  to 
sustain  the  Faculty  during  the  suspension  of  payment  of  interest 
on  the  Virginia  State  bonds  owned  by  the  College;  such  interest 
to  be  pledged  as  security. 

The  scholarship  fund  being  totally  unavailable  (invested  in 
Virginia  State  stocks)  no  student  to  be  received  without  pay- 
ment of  tuition  [Repealed,  June  13,  1866].  On  payment  of 
accrued  interest  by  the  State,  holders  of  scholarship  scrip  af- 
fected as  above  to  be  indemnified. 

1866.  May  15  .  Dr.  Foote. 

'Henceforth  any  trustee  of  this  institution  who  fails  to  attend 
the  regular  meetings  of  the  Board  for  two  consecutive  years, 
and  who  furnishes  no  satisfactory  excuse  for  his  absence,  to  be 
dropped  from  the  rolls,  and  no  longer  to  be  regarded  as  a 
trustee  of  the  College.' 

1866.   June  12-13.    Mr.  Comfort. 

Mr.  Perkinson  and  Prof.  Martin  to  prepare  a  report  on  the 
scholarships  held  in  this  College,  with  the  dates  of  sale  thereof, 
the  names  of  the  holders,  and  their  duration. 

Committee  [A.  G.  Mcllwaine  and  Dr.  Atkinson]  to  take  into 
consideration  raising  funds  for  the  temporary  use  of  the  College, 
urge  the  appointment  of  the  Revs.  R.  Mcllwaine,  A.  Pitzer,  and 
H.  C.  Alexander  as  special  agents. 

Authorization  of  sale  of  perpetual  scholarships. 

Steward's  hall  to  be  leased — lessee  not  to  retail  ardent  spirits 
or  wine  in  the  county. 

1866.  Aug.  1.  J.  F.  Mcllwaine. 

Board  proceeded  to  the  election  of  a  Professor  of  Mathematics 
whose  salary  shall  be  one  thousand  dollars  payable  semi-annually 
on  the  15th  July  and  15th  Jan'y  of  each  year,  and  that  said 
Professor  of  Math,  shall  be  entitled  to  the  rent  of  the  Steward's 
Hall  or  occupy  the  premises. 

After  reading  the  recommendations  and  testimonials  of  many 
applicants  it  was  resolved  that  Col.  Delaware  Kemper  of  Alex- 
andria be  elected  Professor  of  Mathematics.1 

•  Professor  Kemper  had  been  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  Artillery  in  the 
Confederate  army.  He  was  a  military  engineer  of  great  ability.  A  good 
many  of  his  reports  are  preserved  in  the  Official  Records,  Union  and 
Confederate  Armies.  Under  President  Cleveland  he  was  Consul  at 
Amoy,  China.  Colonel  Kemper  was  a  graduate  in  schools  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia,  1849-1851.  His  term  of  office  at  Hampden  Sidney 
was   from   1866  to  1883;  he  died  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  about  1894. 


154      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1867.  June  11-12.   T.  T.  Tredway. 

Dr.  Armistead  resigns  as  Trustee ;  the  Rev.  Dr.  R.  L.  Dabney 
elected  Trustee. 

The  Faculty  of  the  College  to  be  the  committee  of  buildings 
and  repairs,  and  to  elect  the  Curator;  money  received  for  room 
rents  and  servant's  hire  to  be  used  exclusively  for  repairs. 

Resignation  of  Capt.  Perkinson  as  Treasurer — 'the  Board  ex- 
press their  grateful  appreciation  of  the  valuable  services  ren- 
dered by  Capt.  Perkinson  as  Treasurer  of  the  College.' 

Mr.  T.  T.  Tredway  elected  Treasurer  at  2^  per  cent,  on 
all  monies  received. 

Faculty  authorized  to  organize  a  department  for  instruction  in 
Applied  Mathematics  with  such  fees  as  may  seem  to  them  ex- 
pedient— and  attendance  on  the  class  thus  organized  to  be 
voluntary. 

Petition  of  the  students  with  reference  to  the  roof  of  the 
College  referred  to  committee  on  repairs. 

Report  submitted  by  the  Faculty,  particularly  in  relation  to 
the  excellent  conduct  of  the  students,  heard  with  great  pleasure. 

\ 

1868.  June  9-11.    Thos.  E.  Perkinson. 

Recommendation  of  the  Auditing  Committee  approved  and 
adopted,  "That  the  Bonds  of  the  Confederate  States  be  pre- 
served." 

Minute:  Very  encouraging  report  of  the  President — 'Re- 
solved, ist  That  in  view  of  these  most  encouraging  facts  we 
regard  it  as  something  due  to  the  President  and  Professors  of 
the  College  that  we  place  upon  record  our  grateful  testimony 
to  the  fidelity,  zeal,  and  efficiency  with  which  they  have  dis- 
charged their  duties. 

Resolved,  2nd  That  notwithstanding  the  general  impoverish- 
ment of  the  people  of  our  Commonwealth,  and  the  necessity 
which  lies  upon  them  to  repair  their  shattered  fortunes  and 
develop  the  material  resources  of  the  country,  we  hail  it  as  a 
happy  omen  of  the  future  that  parents  still  regard  the  education 
of  their  sons  as  an  interest  of  paramount  importance,  and  that 
a  College  conducted  on  the  principles  which  distinguish  Hamp- 
den Sidney  should  continue  to  receive  a  steadily  increasing 
share  of  public  patronage.'1 

'■  'The  number  of  students  this  year  was  53;  the  average  from  1868  to 
1877  was  a  little  over  80.  In  1867  Randolph-Macon  had  45  students, 
Richmond  90,  and  Davidson  (North  Carolina)  27.  The  early  eighties 
marked  the  turning  point  for  colleges  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina — 
the  early  eighties  marked  the  turning  point  for  most  Southern  institu- 
tions, industrial  and  educational.  The  Manufacturer's  Record  was  estab- 
lished in  1882,  which  is  a  very  good  date  for  reference.  Washington  and 
Lee   (not  typical  during  General  Lee's  administration)    had  96  students 


Moses   D.   Hoge. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         155 

Students  entering  on  scholarships  must  produce  the  scrip; 
or  if  the  Faculty  is  satisfied  that  the  scrip  has  been  lost,  but 
the  scholarship  has  been  paid  for,  the  party  must  be  referred  to 
the  Treasurer  for  the  renewal  of  his  scrip. 

Reports  this  day  presented  by  members  of  the  Faculty,  in 
relation  to  the  Degree  of  Master  of  Arts,  recommitted  to  the 
Faculty  with  instructions  to  report  in  writing  to  the  next  annual 
meeting  some  definite  and  distinct  recommendations  for  adop- 
tion by  the  Board. 

Petition  from  sundry  students,  asking  that  the  Chapel  exer- 
cises of  each  evening  be  dispensed  with,  was  presented  and  re- 
ferred to  the  Faculty. 

Provision  for  salaries  to  be  made  by  loan  (parties  making  the 
loan  to  be  given  an  order  on  the  State)  should  the  State  not  pay 
next  July  and  January  interest. 

Matriculation  fee  of  $5  to  be  charged. 

1868.    Nov.  3-4.    F.  N.  Watkins. 

The  Revd.  Richard  Mcllwaine  appointed  General  Agent  to 
solicit  funds  for  the  further  endowment  of  the  College,  and 
for  the  sale  of  scholarships,  at  a  salary  of  $1500  per  annum, 
and  travelling  and  incidental  expenses;  authorized  to  appoint 
assistant  agents  on  commission;  to  confer  with  committee.  The 
railroad  authorities  of  the  State  to  be  requested  to  grant  the 
General  Agent  a  free  pass.1 

'The  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  "Act  entitled  an 
Act  to  establish  new  scholarships,"  made  a  report,  which  was 
considered,  amended,  and  adopted.' — $100  and  $500  scholar- 
ships authorized ;  conditions  and  guarantees. 

A  room  in  College  to  be  suitably  arranged  as  a  lecture  room, 
and  for  meetings  of  the  students. 

Committee  to  investigate  and  report  on  the  claims  of  assignees 

in  1881,  the  University  of  Virginia  298  students  in  1884,  Randolph 
Macon  108  students  in  1884,  Richmond  113  students  in  1880,  and  David- 
son 98  students  in  1885.  The  mills  of  reconstruction  were  grinding  small, 
on  the  eve   of   a  different   character  of   operation. 

At  Hampden  Sidney  there  was  no  preparatory  department  for  twenty 
years  after  the  war.  In  1873  the  Prince  Edward  Academy  was  estab- 
lished, running  thirteen  years  and  serving  as  a  preparatory  department, 
'distinct  from  the  College.  The  attendance  at  this  excellent  school 
ranged  from  20  to  more  than  40. 

:  *Dr.  Mclwaine,  of  the  class  of  1853,  President  of  the  College  1883-1904, 
was  from  the  time  of  his  first  connection  with  the  institution  its  very 
active  friend.  Hampden  Sidney  College  owes  a  great  deal  to  Dr.  Mc- 
llwaine. The  enumeration  of  his  services,  before  and  after  his  election 
to  the  presidency,   would   fill  page  after  page. 


156      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

of  the  twenty  years'  scholarships;  Faculty  instructed  to  resist 
'any  alleged  claim  to  use  any  of  said  scholarships  purporting  to 
have  been  derived  by  descent,  without  assignment/ 


1869.  June  8.  A.  G.  Mcllwaine. 

Report  of  Revd.  R.  Mcllwaine,  General  Agent.  Committee 
to  confer  with  him,  the  Presbytery  of  West  Hanover,  and  the 
Church  at  Farmville,  to  procure  if  practicable  a  dissolution  of 
his  pastoral  relation. 

Report  of  committee  on  assignable  scholarships — Legal  advice 
of  Profs.  Minor  and  Southall  and  B.  R.  Welford,  Esqr.,  that 
Treasurer  and  Faculty  should  not  yield  claim  in  favor  of  as- 
signees. Treasurer  to  appoint  an  agent  to  solicit  from  all  the 
remaining  holders  of  assignable  scholarships  the  relinquishment 
to  the  College  of  their  rights  of  assignment,  leaving  them  in 
possession  of  their  rights  of  nomination. 

From  and  after  this  date  the  sale  of  $ioo  scholarships  to  be 
discontinued,  and  the  Financial  Agent  to  solicit  from  holders  of 
the  assignable  second  issue  of  scholarships  the  relinquishment 
of  said  scholarships  to  the  College. 

Dr.  Atkinson  and  Prof.  Holladay  to  confer  with  representa- 
tives of  Union  Seminary,  to  bring  about  simultaneous  com- 
mencement anniversaries  for  Seminary  and  College;  same  com- 
mittee, with  Dr.  Dabney,  to  endeavor  to  effect  uniform  times  of 
sessions  and  vacations  of  Virginia  seminaries  of  learning — 
committee  to  attend  the  Education  Association  at  Lexington. 

The  degree  of  A.  M.  to  be  conferred  on  Bachelors  of  Arts 
of  not  less  than  two  years  standing,  who  shall  furnish  evidence 
of  having  engaged  in  literary,  scientific  or  professional  study,, 
together  with  a  written  thesis  upon  some  subject  connected  with 
such  studies. 

Professor  Kemper,  until  otherwise  ordered,  appointed  Mar- 
shal for  the  College  Commencements — with  authority  to  adver- 
tise the  public  exercises;  to  arrange,  with  the  advice  of  the 
Faculty,  the  order  of  exercises ;  print  and  distribute  programmes,, 
and  have  a  general  supervision  and  control  of  the  anniversaries. 

Committee  on  the  President's  report  'regret  to  learn  that  there 
has  been  the  slightest  diminution  in  the  moral  tone  of  the  stu- 
dents— Renew  expressions  of  grateful  confidence  in  the  zeal, 
fidelity,  and  efficiency  of  the  President  and  Faculty  of  the 
College/ 

This  Board  appreciating  the  importance  of  the  settlement  of 
a  Christian  colony  such  as  is  now  located  in  Amelia  County 
appoint  Rev.  R.  L.  Dabney.  D.  D.  a  committee  to  open  a  cor- 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         157 

respondence  with  such  a  colony  with  a  view  of  inducing  them  to 
locate  near  the  College.1 

1870.  Mar.  17.  Thos.  E.  Perkinson. 

Meeting  called  to  consider  the  expediency  of  petitioning  the 
Legislature  for  a  portion  of  the  funds  to  be  derived  from  sale  of 
the  Congress  lands — for  the  promotion  of  agricultural  educa- 
tion. 

Memorial  of  the  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  to  the 
General  Assembly  of  Virginia  [drawn  by  Dr.  Dabney],  viz. 

Petition  for  one  third  of  the  grant  of  300,000  acres;  fund  to 
be  used  under  the  direction  of  the  Legislature,  for  the  instruc- 
tion of  youths  from  the  tobacco  and  seaboard  country.  Pupils 
to  be  nominated  by  the  Legislature,  to  follow  work  in  scientific 
and  practical  agriculture;  an  experiment  farm  to  be  maintained. 
Such  students  to  have  free  access  to  all  classes  in  the  College, 
and  to  occupy  the  buildings  upon  the  same  charges  with  other 
students. 

Petition  presented  on  following  grounds:  'That  the  great 
section  of  the  State  we  represent  is  peculiar  in  soil,  climate,  and 
productions,  and  hence  its  citizens  must  be  taught  a  different 
system  and  principles  of  tillage  adapted  to  it.  That  Hampden 
Sidney  is  the  only  existing  College  in  the  Southside,  embracing 
one  third  of  the  territory  and  population  of  the  State.  That 
the  Southside  has  suffered  peculiarly  by  the  ravages  of  war, 
the  loss  of  property,  the  taxation  of  its  great  staple,  and  the 
prostration  of  its  agriculture.  That  the  healthy  climate  at  this 
College,  its  position  in  the  heart  of  the  tobacco  region,  its  good 
order  and  and  healthy  moral  tone,  its  long,  useful,  and  patriotic 
career  point  it  out  as  eminently  fitted  to  receive  this  trust,  and 
to  administer  it  in  the  most  beneficial  manner.' 

Memorial  entrusted  to  the  President  of  the  College,  with  in- 
structions to  employ  such  agencies  and  means  as  he  may  think 
expedient. 

1870.    June  14-16.    D.  Comfort. 

Revd.  Richard  Mcllwaine  of  Farmville  and  Col.  J.  P.  Fitz- 
gerald of  Prince  Edward  Court  House  elected  Trustees. 

;  xThe  impression  has  been  that  Dr.  Dabney  was  not  at  all  encouraged 
in  this  enterprise,  [cf.  Life  and  Letters,  p.  433].  This  Minute,  as  far 
as  it  goes,  is  evidence  to  the  contrary.  The  question  was,  and  is,  an 
important  one,  and  throughout  a  wide  extent  of  territory.  It  has  been 
*a  natural  law  in  our  country  that  what  is  called  the  'old  stock,'  for 
•whatever  reason,  wears  out  or  is  dissipated.  Individualism  is  no  check 
to  such  tendencies,  and  until  we  get  a  council  of  wise  men  (a  Salomon's 
•House)  to  consider  such  matters,  we  shall  always  have  more  trouble 
than  is  good  for  us.  A  definition  of  democracy  might  be,  that  form  of 
government  which  furthers  continual,  often  disagreeable,  change  with  a 
■very  laudable  ultimate  purpose. 


158      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Curator  to  pay  Dr.  Atkinson  and  Judge  Watkins  expenses 
incurred  in  prosecuting  our  claim  for  a  portion  of  the  Land 
Fund  donated  to  Virginia  by  Congress. 

Fee  for  matriculation  to  be  $10. 

Authorized  sale  of  $100  scholarships,  conveying  privileges  until 
June,  1875. 

Col.  J.  P.  Fitzgerald,  Richard  Mcllwaine,  and  L.  L.  Holladay, 
committee  to  solicit  the  attendance  of  the  Alumni  at  the  next 
annual  Commencement  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  Society 
and  the  inauguration  of  measures  conducive  to  the  prosperity  of 
the  institution. 

Committee  to  make  necessary  and  proper  arrangements  for  an 
Alumni  dinner  or  supper. 

For  the  ensuing  year  $200  to  be  added  if  possible  to  the 
salary  of  the  President  and  each  of  the  Professors. 

'Sale  of  perpetual  scholarships  to  be  urged  forward,  and 
special  attention  to  be  given  to  introducing  them  into  our  abler 
churches,  as  the  best  means  at  present  accessible  to  us  of  add- 
ing to  our  permanent  fund.'1 

1871.   June  13-15.   D.  Comfort. 

Resolved,  That  while  the  Board  of  Trustees  cannot  approve 
Tournaments  as  an  exercise  peculiarly  suited  to  young  gentle- 
men of  literary  tastes  and  habits,  they  make  no  objection  to  the 
entertainment  proposed  by  the  young  men  on  tomorrow  after- 
noon, as  they  are  persuaded  that  the  preparations  therefor  have 
been  made  under  a  misapprehension  of  the  views  of  the 
Trustees.2 

'  Regarding  the  plans  for  endowment  broached  at  this  time  Abram 
Venable  ('57)  wrote — This  noble  and  venerable  institution  of  learning 
has  ever  held  a  high  position  in  the  esteem  and  affection  of  the  people. 
Patrick  Henry,  as  one  of  her  earliest  friends  and  first  trustees,  pro- 
cured the  liberal  and  powerful  charter  she  now  holds,  and  stood  by  her 
while  he  lived.  For  well-nigh  a  century  she  has  educated  and  trained 
and  turned  out  many  of  the  very  best  men  of  the  State,  and  her  sons 
have  filled  every  seat  of  honor  and  occupied  every  post  of  distinction 
or  usefulness  known  to  this  country.  Nor  does  it  appear  that  her  alumni 
are  solely  interested  in  this  matter.  The  people  of  all  Southside  Vir- 
ginia are  peculiarly  interested.  In  all  our  section — the  largest  and  most 
populous  of  the  State — there  is  but  one  College  and  that  is  Hampden 
Sidney.'    New  Commonwealth  (Farmville),  Aug.  25,  1870. 

2This  tournament,  the  only  one  on  record  during  the  century,  was  held 
on  Wednesday  afternoon  of  the  Commencement  'in  a  field  east  of  the 
College/  There  were  fifteen  knights.  The  Knight  of  Buckingham, 
Alexander  Hall  ('72),  crowned  the  queen.  The  Alumni  Banquet  was  on 
'Thursday,  from  5  to  9  o'clock.  Fourteen  toasts  were  responded  to;  the 
galleries  (of  the  old  chapel)  were  assigned  the  ladies  who  came  to  hear. 
At  the  end,  the  company  rose,  joined  hands  around  the  table  and  sang 
Auld  Lang  Syne.  The  commencement  surpassed  any  in  interest  we  have 
ever  attended. — New  Commonwealth,  June  22,   1871. 


J.  M.  P.  Atkinson. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-^SIDNEY.         159 

Salaries  from  ist  January,  1871 — President  $1700.  Each 
Professor  $1200. 

Code  of  Laws  approved:  Faculty  authorized  to  have  printed 
500  copies  of  the  Charter  and  By-Laws,  and  to  prefix  a  brief 
note  of  the  History  of  the  College. 

'On  motion,  Resolved,  That  the  resolution  of  the  Synod  of 
Virginia  of  Oct.,  1870,  in  relation  to  the  expediency  of  mutual 
and  combined  instruction  to  be  given  by  the  Professors  of  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  and  Union  T.  Seminary  be  referred  to  the 
Faculty  of  H.  S.  College  with  instructions  to  confer  with  the 
Faculty  of  U.  T.  Seminary,  and  digest  and  report  any  plan  of 
instruction  suggested  by  the  Synod,  if  deemed  expedient;  this 
Board  add  the  assurance  of  their  hope  that  such  an  arrangement 
can  be  consummated  at  an  early  period,  with  common  benefit 
to  both  institutions.'1 

1871.   July  27.   D.  Comfort. 

The  Secretary  directed  to  return  to  Mr.  A.  G.  Mcllwaine 
the  thanks  of  the  Board  for  the  release  of  the  obligation  of  the 
Board  for  the  sum  of  $253,  the  price  paid  by  him  in  1858  to  Dr. 
J.  M.  P.  Atkinson  for  11^  acres  of  land,  now  held  by  the 
College,  and  for  many  other  favors  received  from  him. 

Resolved,  that  the  Honl.  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby  be  requested  to 
deliver,  during  the  next  commencement,  or  at  any  time  he  may 
designate,  a  discourse  on  the  lives,  characters,  and  services  of 
the  founders  and  earlier  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College, 
and  in  case  of  his  complying  with  this  request,  the  Secretary 
be  directed  to  give  him  access  to  the  records  of  the  College.2 

■■H  Feb.  21.   T.  T.  Tredway. 

Report  of  committee  on  instruction  in  Modern  Languages — 
this  course  for  the  present  must  be  outside  the  established  cur- 
riculum; the  Professor  of  Latin  to  be  Professor  of  German, 
and  the  Professor  of  Greek,  of  French;  a  two  year  course  in 
each ;  certificate  of  proficiency  to  be  given  those  persons  whether 
matriculates  or  not  who  attend  either  or  both  schools,  and  stand 

JOut  of  considerations  of  this  general  matter  (e.  g.,  how  much  geology- 
should  theological  students  know,  and  whether  they  should  be  taught 
geology  in  theological  seminaries)  grew  the  celebrated  controversy  be- 
tween Dr.  Dabney  and  Dr.  Woodrow,  of  South  Carolina  [See  Life 
of  Dabney,  p.  342,  ff].  About  this  time  appeared  Dr.  Temple's  'Essays 
and   Reviews,'    so  harmless   a  book  now. 

2Mr.  Grigsby,  at  this  time  President  of  the  Virginia  Historical  Society 
and  Chancellor  of  William  and  Mary,  was  living  in  Charlotte  County, 
a  few  miles  from  Hampden  Sidney.  He  had  been  prepared  for  Yale 
College,  before  1815,  at  the  Rev.  Drury  Lacy's  'Ararat'  school,  very  ne^r 
Hampden  Sidney. 


160      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

such  examinations  as  are  required  of  candidates  for  the  degree 
of  B.  A. ;  tuition  fee  in  each  school  to  be  $20  per  scholastic  year, 
until  otherwise  ordered. 

1872.  June  11-13.    D.  Comfort. 

Mr.  Addison  Hoge  elected  Professor  of  Greek.1 

Resolution  that  tuition  fee  be  $75  instead  of  $50  referred  to 
the  special  Finance  Committee. 

The  Board  returns  grateful  acknowledgments  to  Prof.  Martin 
for  a  gift  of  land. 

Thanks  of  the  Board  returned  to  Messrs.  Stiles  and  Gilliam, 
and  Judge  Watkins,  for  zealous  and  efficient  exertions  in  behalf 
of  the  claims  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  to  a  portion  of  the 
Congressional  land  fund. 

Curator  to  pay  any  fees  due  by  the  College  to  Messrs.  Thos. 
S.  Bocock,  Kirkpatrick,  and  Blackford  for  their  services  in  the 
case  Dickinson  vs.  H.  S.  College;2  thanks  of  the  Trustees  re- 
turned to  the  above  named  gentlemen  for  the  zeal  and  ability 
with  which  they  advocated  the  cause  of  the  College.  Thanks 
also  to  Messrs  Irving  and  McKinney,  Henry,  and  Watkins  for 
similar  services  performed  gratuitously  at  the  trial  of  the  same 
cause  in  the  Court  of  Prince  Edward. 

In  the  opinion  of  the  Board  it  is  important  that  the  cause  of 
the  College,  its  needs,  its  merits,  and  its  claims,  be  made  known 
as  far  as  possible  to  the  Presbyterian  Church  South.  President 
Atkinson  requested  to  attend  the  meetings  of  Synods  and  Pres- 
byteries whenever  possible  without  neglecting  other  duties ;  ex- 
penses necessarily  incurred  to  be  a  charge  upon  the  College 
Treasury. 

Tuition  to  be  $60,  to  take  effect  in  the  session  of  1873-74.  -, 

1873.  Jan.  14.   D.  Comfort. 

Correspondence  recorded,  with  regard,  to  the  transfer  by 
Major  Joseph  Cloyd,  of  Dublin,  Pulaski  Co.,  to  the  Trustees  of 
Hampden  Sidney  College  of  the  residue  of  his  subscription  to 

*  1Professor  Addison  Hogue  (i$72-i886),  now  Corcoran  Professor  of 
Greek  at  Washington  and  Lee  University,  was  a  graduate  of  the  College, 
class  of  1869;  University  of  Virginia,  1869-72;  on  leave  of  absence  in 
Europe  1883-1885;  Professor  of  Greek  and  Latin,  University  of  Mis- 
sissippi, 1886-93;  since  1893,  Professor  at  Washington  and  Lee  Univer- 
sity;  author  of  Irregular   Verbs  of  Attic  Prose. 

2This  case  came  on  in  Prince  Edward  County  Circuit  Court,  of  which 
Mr.  Dickinson  (a  Trustee  of  the  College)  was  Judge.  The  suit  was  brought 
for  James  M.  Booker,  and  the  Judge  not  feeling  at  liberty  to  sit,  the 
case  was  transferred,  March,  1871,  to  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  City 
of  Lynchburg.     The  papers  are  on  file  at  Lynchburg. 

Thomas  S.  Bocock,  a  graduate  of  the  College,  1838,  had  been  Speaker 
of  the   Confederate   Congress*. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         161 

the  Theological  Seminary  (now  defunct)  of  the  United  Synod 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  Thanks  of  the  Board  due  and 
tendered  to  Major  Joseph  Cloyd  for  his  generous  contribution, 
and  also  to  the  Revd.  T.  W.  Hooper  for  his  zeal  and  fidelity  to 
the  College  in  securing  this  donation  of  funds. 

The  Treasurer,  with  Major  C.  S.  Carrington  and  F.  N. 
Watkins  a  committee  of  the  Board  to  represent  the  College, 
if  they  shall  deem  it  wise,  in  the  February  conference  of  the 
State  and  its  creditors. 

The  Revd.  J.  D.  Mitchell  appointed  General  Agent  of  the 
College,  with  a  salary  of  $1500  and  travelling  expenses.1 

The  Revd.  H.  M.  White  and  the  Revd.  E.  H.  Barnett  requested 
to  act  as  agents  within  the  bounds  of  Abingdon  Presbytery,  at 
five  per  cent,  commissions  and  travelling  expenses. 

1873.   June  10-12.   A.  G.  Mcllwaine. 

Messrs.  Moth,  Dalby,  and  Bigelow  of  Farmville  thanked  for 
their  generous  and  gratuitous  publication  of  the  prospectus  of 
Hampden  Sidney  in  a  publication  to  be  circulated  in  America  and 
Europe.2 

Suggestion  of  Executive  Committee  approved,  for  calling  a 
convention  of  the  Elders  and  Deacons  and  other  friends  of  the 
College. 

The  Curator  directed  to  insure  the  College.  The  committee 
to  whom  was  referred  that  part  of  the  President's  report,  which 
refers  to  an  additional  endowment  (of  $200,000)  to  the  College, 
made  a  report  which  was  read  and  adopted. 

On  motion,  Dr.  J.  M.  P.  Atkinson,  A.  G.  Mcllwaine,  Chas. 
S.  Carrington,  S.  W.  Venable,  M.  L.  Lacy,  P.  B.  Price,  D.  B. 
Ewing,  and  G.  W.  Finley  (3  members  to  constitute  a  quorum) 
were  appointed  a  committee  on  the  endowment  fund  of  $200,000. 

1The  Rev.  Jacob  Duche  Mitchell,  D.  D.,  born  in  Philadelphia,  1806;  a 
graduate  of  Princeton  and  of  Princeton  Seminary;  a  minister  in  Bedford 
County,  Va.,  for  many  years,  and  pastor  of  the  Second  Presbyterian 
Church,    Lynchburg,    1852-69;    died    at    Alexandria,    Va.,    1877. 

2Alfred  Moth,  who  later  returned  to  England,  was  the  Cashier  of  the 
English-American  Bank  established  about  this  time  at  Farmville.  Messrs. 
Dalby  and  Bigelow  were  a  firm  of  real  estate  agents,  whose  business  lay 
particularly  in  bringing  in  settlers  from  the  British  Isles.  A  great  many 
settlers,  very  desirable  citizens,  were  brought  in,  taking  up  lands  in 
Southside  Virginia  and  throughout  the  State.  It  was  the  first  of 
such  movements  after  the  war.  Unfortunately  not  a  great  number 
of  these  settlers  stayed  in  the  country  south  of  James  River.  A  detailed 
account  of  this  movement  would  form  matter  of  great  interest.  See 
Univ.  of  Va.,  Alumni  Bulletin,  IV,  69 — The  Second  Coming  of  the 
English  to  Virginia.' 


162  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1874.    June  9-11.    D.  Comfort. 

The  President  made  his  annual  report  which  was  received 
and  referred  to  a  committee,  and  that  portion  of  the  report 
referring  to  a  connexion  with  the  Synod  of  Virginia  was  re- 
ferred to  a  committee  consisting  of  M.  D.  Hoge,  F.  N.  Watkins,, 
and  W.  W.  Henry. 

All  agents  authorized  to  receive  Virginia  bonds  in  payment 
of  subscriptions  at  their  par  value. 

The  committee  on  that  portion  of  President  Atkinson's  report 
referring  to  a  connexion  with  the  Synod  of  Va.,  made  a  report 
through  their  chairman,  Dr.  M.  D.  Hoge,  as  follows — 

The  Trustees  of  Hampden  Sidney  College  have  been  greatly- 
gratified  to  learn  that  such  a  cordial  interest  was  expressed  in. 
the  welfare  of  their  institution  by  the  Synod  of  Virginia  at  its 
last  meeting.  Appreciating  as  we  do,  all  the  aid,  material  and 
moral,  which  that  venerable  Court  can  give  to  the  College,  we 
accept  with  gratitude  the  assurance  of  its  readiness  not  only 
to  continue  its  favor  but  to  enter  upon  such  new  relations  as 
may  be  consistent  with  the  Constitution  of  the  Church  and  with 
the  interests  of  the  College. 

This  Board  would  readily  consent  to  the  specific  proposition, 
to  give  to  the  Synod  of  Virginia  a  veto  power  in  the  election  of 
Trustees,  were  our  individual  feelings  of  confidence  in  the  Synod 
and  our  grateful  regard  for  its  kind  intentions  towards  the 
College  alone  to  be  considered.  But  in  view  of  the  fact  that 
many  members  of  the  Synod  itself  were  doubtful  as  to  the 
propriety  of  assuming  any  ecclesiastical  control  of  the  College, 
and  of  the  additional  fact  that  not  only  would  the  consent  of 
the  Legislature  of  Virginia  be  required  to  give  sanction  to  such 
an  arrangement,  but  that  any  proposition  of  the  kind  would  be- 
certainly  met  with  earnest  opposition  in  that  body,  the  Board" 
deems  it  inexpedient  at  present  to  encounter  the  risk  of  the 
rejection  of  such  a  measure  by  the  Legislature  of  the  State. 
Now,  we  hold  our  Charter  by  a  secure  tenure,  but  any  change 
in  its  terms  and  conditions  might  render  it  liable  to  repeal  or 
amendment  at  any  future  time,  inasmuch  as  by  a  general  statute 
in  force  since  1869,  all  acts  of  incorporation  such  as  the  one 
suggested  to  the  Synod  of  Virginia  are  liable  to  be  amended, 
altered,  or  rejected  at  the  will  of  the  Legislature,  and  if  the 
College  were  to  refuse  to  accept  such  amendment  thereafter,  it 
would  be  liable  to  forfeit  its  Charter;  and  we  therefore  deem  it 
wisest  to  seek  no  changes  which  might  expose  us  to  such  a 
hazard.  Moreover,  if  what  the  honored  Synod  of  Virginia 
desired,  is  some  guarantee  of  the  true  Presbyterian  character  of 
the  College,  this  Board  is  ready  to  give  pledges,  which  its  Con- 
stitution will  permit,  and  to  the  utmost  limit  of  that  permission.. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         163 

We  do  not  believe  that  any  education  is  healthful  which  is  not 
Christian,  that  any  education  is  likely  to  be  Christian  which  is  not 
denominational,  and  while  our  College  is  not  sectarian,  we  do 
most  heartily  and  unequivocally  aver  and  announce  that  Hamp- 
den Sidney  College  is  denominationally  Presbyterian  in  its  tradi- 
tions, in  its  associations,  in  its  present  organization,  and  that  it 
is  the  fixed  purpose  of  its  Board  of  Trustees,  by  the  exertion  of 
every  legitimate  influence,  to  maintain  the  distinctively  Presby- 
terian character  in  all  future  time. 

We  take  advantage  of  this  opportunity  to  express  to  the 
venerable  Synod  of  Virginia  our  heartfelt  gratitude  for  its  in- 
terest in  our  College,  an  interest  manifested  in  so  many  ways 
and  now  measured  by  nearly  a  century  of  years,  and  at  the  same 
time  with  just  pride  to  express  the  conviction  that  our  College 
is,  because  of  its  past  services  to  the  Church,  because  of  its 
present  admirable  organization,  high  standard  of  scholarship, 
and  the  healthful  Christian  influence  which  pervades  it,  an  insti- 
tution every  way  worthy  of  the  benefits  which  the  powerful 
patronage  of  the  Synod  can  confer  on  it. 

On  motion,  Resolved,  That  the  Clerk  furnish  Revd.  M.  D. 
Hoge,  D.  D.,  with  a  certified  copy  of  this  Minute,  and  that  Dr. 
Hoge  communicate  the  same  to  the  Synod  of  Virginia  and  to 
the  public  in  such  terms  and  manner  as  to  him  may  seem 
expedient.1 

aIt  is  pertinent  to  assemble  a  few  opinions  on  this  subject. 

1.  Dr.  Thornwell  [at  that  time  President  of  the  College  of  South 
Carolina],    1853: 

A  College  knows  nothing  of  denominations,  except  as  a  feature  in  the 
history  of  the  human  race;  but  it  does  not  follow  that  a  College  must 
be  necessarily  atheistic  or  unchristian.  What  is  wanted  is  the  pervading 
influence  of  religion  as  a  life.  *  *  *  Apart  from  the  principle  in- 
volved, I  have  other  objections  to  sectarian  education.  I  say  sectarian 
education ;  for  the  Church,  as  catholic  and  one,  in  the  present  condition 
of  things,  is  not  visible  and  corporate.  What  she  does,  can  only  be 
done  through  the  agency  of  one  or  more  of  the  various  fragments  into 
which  she  has  been  suffered  to  split.  In  the  first  place,  it  is  evident, 
from  the  feebleness  of  the  sects,  that  these  colleges  cannot  be  very 
largely  endowed.  In  the  next  place,  they  are  -likely  to  be  numer- 
ous. From  these  causes  will  result  a  strenuous  competition  for 
patronage;  and  from  this,  two  effects  may  be  expected  to  follow: 
first,  the  depression  of  the  general  standard  of  education,  so  as 
to  allure  students  to  their  halls;  and  next,  the  preference  of  what  is 
ostentatious  and  attractive  in  education,  to  what  is  solid  and  substantial. 

*  *  *  I  think,  too,  that  the  tendency  of  sectarian  Colleges,  to  per- 
petuate the  strife  of  sects,  to  fix  whatever  is  heterogeneous  in  the  ele- 
ments of  national  character,  and  to  alienate  the  citizens  from  each  other, 
is  a  consideration  not  to  be  overlooked. 

[Life  of  Thornwell,  Richmond,  1875.  pp.  335,  337] 

Asked  to  lend  his   assistance  to   a  plan   for   founding   a   Presbyterian 


164      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Mr.  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby  was  invited  to  sit  with  the  Board  and 
confer  with  them  on  the  subject  of  the  Centenary  celebration 
next  year. 

Resolved,  that  M.  D.  Hoge,  D.  D.,  Chas.  S.  Carrington,  W. 
W.  Henry,  and  Pres't  J.  M.  P.  Atkinson  be  constituted  an 
Executive  Committee  on  endowment  and  agencies,  with  authority 
to  appoint  a  secretary  if  necessary,  two  of  whom  shall  constitute 
a  quorum. 

The    following    special    agents    were    also    appointed,    viz. — 
Revd.  D.   B.   Ewing,  Abingdon  and   Montgomery   Presbyteries 
"      P.    B.    Price,    Lexington    and    Winchester  " 

"      J.   C.   Brown  and  M.   L.  Lacy,  Greenbrier  " 

T.  T.  Tredway,  Esqr.,  Roanoke  and  West  Hanover  " 

J.    R.    Wilson,    South    of    Virginia  " 

Revd.  B.  M.  Smith,  New  York 

"      J.  D.  Mitchell,  Pennsylvania. 
With  Salaries  of  10  per  cent  on  all  collections. 

University  for  the  Confederate  States  [1861],  'Dr.  Thornwell  replied, 
that  he  would  do  so  cordially,  provided  it  were  not  made  a  Church  insti- 
tution, organized  and  controlled  by  the  Church,  through  her  courts.  He 
thought  a  University  might  be  created  by  the  Presbyterian  people  of  the 
land,  which  should  be  penetrated  by  their  influence  and  piety,  without 
contravening  the  principle,  for  which  he  had  always  contended,  that 
the  Church,  as  such,  should  not  embark  in  the  business  of  general 
education.' 

[Ibid.,  p.  328.] 

2.  Dr.  William  H.  Ruffner,  1893: 

:  A  college  backed  by  the  State  or  backed  by  the  Church,  has  certain 
advantages  peculiar  to  itself,  but  the  college  that  is  thrown  upon  its 
own  merits,  and  moves  on  an  independent  and  elevated  plane,  has  some 
advantages  possessed  by  no  other,  and  if  it  strikes  the  right  key  may 
surpass  all  others. 

{.Washington  and  Lee  Historical  Papers,  No.  4,  p.  41.] 

3.  Dr.  Pritchett,  President  of  the  Carnegie  Foundation  for  the  Advance- 
ment of  Teaching,   1908: 

No  denomination  can  in  the  future  expect  to  control  a  College  and 
at  the  same  time  call  on  the  public  to  support  it.  *  *  *  It  is  no  part 
of  Christian  education  to  hold  control  of  a  college  and  leave  it  to  starve. 
No  gain  in  college  support  can  compensate  for  a  loss  in  college  integrity. 

*  *  *  Nor  ought  this  question  in  my  judgment,  whether  settled  in 
the  one  way  or  the  other,  to  disturb  the  friendly  relations  between  a 
denomination  and  a  college  which  has  grown  up  under  its  nurture  and 
been  inspired  by  its  spirit. 

[Relations  of  Christian  Denominations  to  Colleges,  p.  17,  etc.] 

4.  Cyclopaedia  of  Education  [Macmillan],  Vol.  II,  191 1 : 

The  undenominational  small  college  has  a  place  so  secure  and  so 
important  that  all  the  tendencies  to-day  in  large  colleges  and  in  pro- 
fessional schools  are  seeming  only  to  strengthen  it  against  its  real  and 
supposed  dangers. 

[cf.  Nation,  vol.  93,  p.  608 — Dec.  21,  1911.] 

See  also,  Maclean,  History  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  II,  13-21 ; 
330-335. 


W.  W.   Henry. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         165 

Appointment  of  Revd.  J.  D.  Mitchell  as  General  Agent  re- 
voked; his  salary  of  $1500  to  be  paid  from  his  own  future  col- 
lections. 

Committee  appointed  by  the  Elders  and  Deacons  Convention 
recognised  by  the  Board  and  invited  to  co-operate  with  the 
Executive  Committee  on  endowment  and  agencies  located  in 
Richmond. 

Agents  to  sell  perpetual  scholarships.  Committee  to  mature  a 
plan  of  scholarships  for  the  endowment  of  the  College  and  to 
report  the  condition  of  scholarships  already  sold. 

Faculty  authorized  to  allow  organization  of  mess  clubs  among 
the  students,  in  such  basement  rooms  as  are  not  otherwise  occu- 
pied. 

1875.   Apr.  14.   D.  Comfort. 

Rlesolved,  1st  That  hereafter  the  foundation  of  the  institution 
shall  be  dated  from  the  year  1776,  when  it  was  first  opened  for 
students,  rather  than  from  1775,  when  the  appointment  of  the 
first  trustees  and  teachers  took  place. 

Resolved  2nd,  That  the  Centennial  of  the  College  shall  be 
celebrated  in  June  1876. 

1875.   June  7-10.   D.  Comfort. 

A  report  of  the  Superintendent  of  the  Mess  was  presented 
and  ordered  to  be  filed. 

Prof.  L.  L.  Holladay  and  F.  N.  Watkins  a  Committee  to  cause 
a  Catalogue  of  the  Alumni  and  former  students,  Trustees, 
Faculty  &c  &c  to  be  prepared  and  published,  with  such  brief 
notices  as  to  them  may  seem  proper,  and  that  the  Committee  be 
authorised  to  employ  assistance  of  clerks  and  others,  and  that 
the  Treasurer  pay  the  costs. 

The  reports  of  the  Professors  approved,  and  their  diligence 
commended. 

Sections  6.  7.  8.  and  9  of  the  Act  for  Establishing  Scholar- 
ships of  Nov.  4.  1868  [rescinded  June  1869]  amended  and  re- 
enacted  regarding  perpetual  scholarships. 

Committee,  under  the  advice  of  counsel,  to  cause  some  public 
record  to  be  made  of  the  Trust  Fund  created  by  the  Ordinance 
of  the  Trustees  for  the  establishment  of  scholarships,  so  that 
the  fund  may  not  be  subject  to  debts  or  liabilities  of  the  corpora- 
tion, securing  its  future  appropriation  solely  to  the  ends  for 
which  the  Trust  is  created.  If  this  cannot  be  done  by  existing 
law,  the  committee  to  secure  if  practicable  the  necessary  legisla- 
tion. 


i66  CALENDAR)  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1875.   July  5.   F.  N.  Watkins. 

Amendment  of  the  Act  of  June  9,  1875,  establishing  scholar- 
ships: conditions  of  perpetual  scholarships. 

Treasurer  authorized  to  recall  certificates  of  perpetual  scholar- 
ships already  issued  (by  the  consent  of  the  holders)  and  issue 
new  certificates  under  the  Act  of  this  day — Act  providing  that 
such  scholarships  may  descend,  be  bequeathed,  or  be  assigned. 

Thanks  of  the  Board  tendered  to  Mr.  John  L.  Weeks  of  Bal- 
timore for  his  donation  to  the  College. 

1875.  Nov.  18.   F.  D.  Irving. 

A  letter  read  from  Burwell  B.  Wilkes,  Esqr.,  of  Brunswick 
Co.,  enclosing  a  letter  from  Revd.  T.  P.  Hunt,  D.  D.,  proposing 
a  donation  to  Hampden  Sidney  College  of  $500.  The  President 
of  the  College  directed  to  return  the  thanks  of  the  College  to 
Revd.  T.  P.  Hunt  for  his  generous  donation.1 

Permission  to  be  asked  to  use  the  buildings  of  the  Union 
Theological  Seminary  for  guests  at  the  next  annual  Commence- 
ment. 

This  meeting  having  been  informed  that  a  large  number  of 
the  Trustees  concur  in  the  opinion  that  it  is  expedient  to  appoint 
President  Atkinson  a  General  Agent  of  the  College  in  the  effort 
to  increase  its  endowment,  Resolved,  that  President  Atkinson 
be  appointed  a  General  Agent,  with  authority  to  appoint  sub- 
agents,  who  are  to  settle  with  and  be  compensated  by  him.  The 
President  authorized  to  make  all  proper  arrangements  for  in- 
struction in  his  department  during  his  absence,  said  instructors 
to  be  compensated  out  of  the  percentages  and  allowances  here- 
inafter granted  to  him  as  General  Agent.  The  compensation  of 
the  General  Agent  to  be:  Ten  per  cent  on  the  amount  of  all 
subscriptions,  payable  on  collection,  and  $20  on  each  perpetual 
scholarship  sold;  salary  as  President  allowed  during  agency. 

1876.  June  12-15.   Mr.  Comfort.   R.  C.  Anderson. 

A.  G.  Mcllwaine,  Esqr.,  by  letter  resigned  the  office  of  Trustee 
which  was  reluctantly  accepted — 'We  return  him  our  heartfelt 

JMr.  Hunt's  Reminiscences  (Wilkes-Barre,  Pa.,  1901)  show  in  many- 
passages  his  affectionate  regard  for  the  scenes  of  his  youth — he  was  a 
step-son  of  Dr.  Moses  Hoge.  His  life,  spent  largely  as  a  temperance 
lecturer,  was  a  very  busy  one.  For  some  time  during  the  war  he  was 
chaplain  to  the  2nd  Pennsylvania  Heavy  Artillery,  being  mustered  out 
at  Petersburg,  not  very  far  from  his  early  home  in  Prince  Edward. 
When  Lafayette  College  was  engaged  in  the  scholarships  scheme,  Mr. 
Hunt  was  one  of  the  agents — "it  was  the  hardest  work  I  was  ever 
engaged  in,"  he  said.  There  is  a  portrait  of  him  at  the  Presbyterian 
Historical   Society  in   Philadelphia.     He  was   a  genuine   reformer. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         167 

thanks  for  his  genial  society,  his  wise  and  prudent  counsel,  his 
regular  annual  attendance,  his  untiring  devotion,  and  his  gen- 
erous liberality  to  our  beloved  institution.' 

The  committee  appointed  to  consider  the  reports  of  the  Presi- 
dent and  the  Chairman  of  the  Faculty  pro  tern,  have  maturely 
considered  these  papers.  These  reports  set  forth  the  fact  that 
in  the  main  the  students  have  shewn  themselves  well  disposed, 
and  that  as  a  body  they  will  compare  favorably  with  any  other 
like  collection  of  youths  in  the  country,  but  there  has  been  some 
dissipation  among  them  and  a  few  cases  of  folly  inexcusable. 

Committee  to  take  into  consideration  and  digest  a  plan  for  the 
introduction  into  the  curriculum  of  the  College  of  a  course  in 
English,  including  the  Bible  as  one  of  the  text  books ;  to  report 
at  the  next  annual  meeting  of  the  Board.1 

Curator  to  re-lease  the  College  Hotel  [late  Steward's  Hall] 
upon  the  same  terms  as  this  year. 

For  the  next  year  the  rent  of  rooms  used  for  messing  purposes 
to  be  remitted. 

A  house  for  Professor  Blair  to  be  purchased  or  erected. 

Archives  of  H.  S.  College  bearing  date  1777:  1778:  1785  were 
presented  by  N.  F.  Cabell,  Esqr.,  of  Nelson  County,  Va  and  the 
thanks  of  the  Board  returned  to  Mr.  Cabell  for  the  same. 

Revd.  T.  W.  Hooper  appointed  to  prepare  and  record  in  a 
suitable  book  a  History  of  this  Commencement. 

Resolved,  that  the  President  of  the  College  be  requested*  to 
take  steps  to  get  for  the  College  an  autograph  letter  and  a  por- 
trait of  each  of  the  Presidents  of  the  College,  from  its  founda- 
tion, and  any  relics  of  said  Presidents  which  may  be  of  interest. 

Resolved,  that  the  Revd.  R.  L.  Dabney,  D.  D.  be  requested  to 
"furnish  a  copy  of  the  sermon  preached  on  last  Sabbath ;  and  that 
the  Honl.  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby,  the  Revd.  W.  U.  Murkland,  D.  D., 
the  Revd.  M.  D.  Hoge,  D.  D.,  and  the  Honl.  J.  W.  Stevenson 
be  requested  to  furnish  each  a  copy  of  his  address  delivered 

President  Smith's  advertisement  of  1775  contains  the  statement: 
""The  system  of  education  will  resemble  that  which  is  adopted  in  the 
College  of  New  Jersey,  save  that  a  more  particular  attention  shall  be 
paid  to  the  cultivation  of  the  English  language  than  is  usually  done  in 
places  of  public  education."  During  the  hundred  years,  what  with  formal 
instruction,  dissertations,  compositions,  orations  and  the  work  of  the 
literary  societies,  the  English  language  had  not  been  neglected,  and  of 
this  there  is  abundant  proof.  In  the  catalogues  after  1876  English 
is  mentioned  specifically  for  the  first  time  in  1881 — "the  studies  in 
English  are  for  the  present  conducted  by  Professors  Atkinson,  Kemper 
and  Holladay,"  five  hours  a  week.  The  next  year  (1882)  Professor 
Currell  (a  graduate  of  Washington  and  Lee  and  now  Professor  there), 
began  work  in  the  department  of  English. 


i68 


CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 


upon  this  occasion,1  for  publication  in  a  Centennial  volume,  and 
that  Richard  Mcllwaine,  D.  D.,  J.  L.  Weeks,  A.  W.  Pitzer,  and 
W.  U.  Murkland,  D.  D.,  be  appointed  a  committee  to  make  ar- 
rangements for  its  publication. 

The  Trustees,  after  a  full  consideration  of  the  question  of  the 
wisest  agency  to  complete  the  endowment  of  the  College,  feel 
that  the  best  interests  of  the  institution  demand  that  Dr.  Atkin- 
son should  continue  as  General  Agent  until  it  shall  seem  expe- 
dient to  resume  the  duties  of  his  Professorship  and  the  Presi- 
dency, not  limiting  the  result  of  his  agency  to  securing  the  sum 
of  $50,000,  the  terms  of  compensation  for  his  services  to  be  those 
presented  by  the  action  of  the  Board  in  November  1875. 

The  committee  on  the  Treasurer's  Report  made  a  report  which 
was  received,  approved,  and  ordered  to  be  recorded  at  length : — 

It  appears  from  the  report  of  the  Treasurer  that  the  assets  of 
the  College,  upon  which  we  can  rely  for  an  annual  income  are 
as  follows: 


First  old  registered  Va.  bonds, 

bearing  6  pr.  cent 
Virginia  Consols. 
Missouri  Coupon  bond 
S.  S.  Rail  Road  bonds 
Farmville  Insurance  Stock 
John  H.  Flood's  bonds 
Planters'  Bank  certificates, 

bearing  6  pr.  cent. 
Planters'  Bank  certificates, 

bearing  5% 
Regd.  Bond  3917 


Showing  total  amount 


Amount 

Income 

$70,550.00 

ir,300.oo 

1,000.00 

600.00 

$4,233.00 

550.00 

60.00 

35.oo 

100.00 

6.00 

400.00 

24.00 

2,267.02 

136.02 

3,531-94 
3-33 

175-39 
.19 

$89,192.29 

$5,219.60 

Besides  the  above,  the  Treasurer  holds  certificates  No.  6339 
and  3729  amounting  to  $7,151.67,  which  is  contingent  upon  set- 
tlement of  public  debt  between  West  Va.  and  Va.  and  the  mar- 
ket value  of  which  is  about  $570.  Besides  he  holds  two  certifi- 
cates as  of  past  due  interest  from  the  State  of  Virginia  for  $103 
each,  making  $206,  the  market  value  for  which  is  $  also 

*Mr.  Grigsby's  Address  has  not  yet  been  published.  This  was  the  last 
of  his  important  papers,  and  the  only  one  unpublished.  A  very  good 
summary  of  Mr.  Stevenson's  Address  is  to  be  found  in  the  manuscript 
history  of  this  Commencement.  Mr.  Stevenson  (the  son  of  Andrew- 
Stevenson,  minister  to  England)  was  a  student  at  the  College  1827-29; 
at  this  time  he  was  a  member  of  the  Senate,  from  Kentucky.  Dr.  Murk- 
land   (class  of  1862)  was  later  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees. 


RlCHAKD  MclLWAINE. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         169 

two  certificates  of  perpetual  scholarships  in  La  Payette  College, 
Pa.,  valued  at  $1000. 

The  report  of  the  General  Agent  shows  a  subscription  on 
the  part  of  the  friends  of  the  College,  in  Virginia  Consols,  other 
securities,  and  cash,  amounting  to  $41,31 5. 561  as  follows— 

Subscription  in  Va.  Consols  $19,070.00 

To  be  paid  at  various  times  in  cash  20,645.56 

In  doubtful  bonds  1,600.00 


The  fidelity  and  energy  of  President  Atkinson  in  the  discharge 
of  this  important  duty  calls  for  an  expression  of  our  apprecia- 
tion of  his  faithfulness,  efficiency,  and  zeal  on  behalf  of  the  insti- 
tution over  which  he  presides.  Your  committee  [A.  D.  Dickin- 
son, J.  P.  Fitzgerald,  H.  S.  Reynolds]  recommend  that  Presi- 
dent Atkinson  be  requested  to  go  forward  in  the  prosecution  of 
the  work  which  we  hope  he  has  but  just  begun. 

Treasurer  to  pay  $30  to  the  Committee  of  Arrangements  for 
music;  Curator  to  pay  annually,  out  of  any  funds  not  other- 
wise appropriated,  the  sum  of  $50  to  aid  in  providing  music  for 
the  Commencement  exercises. 

1Amount  raised  within  seven  months.  See  History  of  the  Centennial 
Commencement  [Manuscript]    by  Dr.  Hooper,  p.  6. 


TRUSTEES:   1775-1876. 

[If  there  has  been  neglect  in  preserving  records  of  the 
Trustees  as  individuals,  it  is  traceable  to  themselves  alone.  How- 
ever, meagre  as  the  records  are,  in  one  item  (that  of  their  inter- 
relationships) more  has  been  worked  out  regarding  the  Trustees 
of  Hampden  Sidney  than  perhaps  for  any  other  similar  body  of 
men  in  this  country.  In  four  articles  in  the  Virginia  Magazine 
of  History  and  Biography  (vol.  VI,  1898-1899)  the  late  Pro- 
fessor Henneman  has  put  together  the  results  of  a  very  close  in- 
vestigation to  show  the  genealogy  of  the  members  of  this  Board 
of  Trustees,  how  intimately  related  these  men  have  been,  and 
particularly  during  the  period  ending  with  1876. 

The  total  number  of  Trustees  appointed  before  1876  was  one 
hundred  and  fifty  six.  Of  these  certainly  one  hundred  were 
alumni  of  some  college :  ninety  two  are  known  to  have  been,  ap- 
portioned as  follows — 

Hampden   Sidney    49 

Princeton    17 

Washington  and  Lee   9 

Yale 3 

University  of  Virginia    3 

William  and  Mary   2 

Centre    2 

Union,  Dartmouth,  Jefferson,  Amherst,  South 
Hanover,  University  of  North  Carolina, 
Marion    1  each.] 

1775-1779.  SAMUEL  STANHOPE  SMITH 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  ACADEMY. 

Princeton,    1769;   President  of   the   College   of 
New  Jersey,   1 795-1812. 

1775.  SAMUEL  LEAKE 

Princeton,    1764;    Presbyterian    minister,    Albe- 
marle County;  d.  Dec.  2,  1775. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.        171 

1775-1782.  CALEB  WALLACE 

Princeton,  1770;  Presbyterian  minister,  Char- 
lotte County;  Judge,  Court  of  Appeals,  Ken- 
tucky. 

[Cf.  Life  and  Times  of  Judge  Caleb  Wallace. 
By  William  H.  Whitsitt.  Louisville.  1888. 
Filson  Club  Publications  No.  4] 

1775 .  JOHN  TABB 

Member,  House  of  Burgesses,  Amelia  County; 
Member,  Convention  of   1776;  died  c.   1798.1 

1779-1791.  JOHN  BLAIR  SMITH 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  ACADEMY  AND 
OF  THE  COLLEGE. 

Princeton,  1773;  President  of  Union  College, 
New  York,  1795- 1799. 

1775-1799.  PATRICK  HENRY 

Governor  of  Virginia,  &c.  &c. 

1775-1798.  WILLIAM  CABELL 

Member,  House  of  Burgesses,  Amherst  County; 

Member,  Convention  of  1776  &c. 
[Cf.  The  Cab  ells  and  their  Kin.     By  Alexander 

Brown.  Boston.  1895.  pp.  75-130] 

1775-1818.  PAUL  CARRINGTON 

Member,  House  of  Burgesses,  Charlotte  County ; 

Member,  Convention  of   1776;  Judge  of  the 

General  Court  &c. 
[Cf.  Discourse  on  the   Virginia  Convention  of 

1776.     By  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby.     Richmond. 

1855.  PP.  97-io5] 

1783-1805.  ROBERT  LAWSON 

Colonel,  Fourth  Virginia,  Continental  line; 
Brigadier  General,  Virginia  line;  Member, 
Convention  of  1788;  Council  of  State. 


lrThese  four  were  Trustees  before  the  Charter.  Apparently  John  Tabb 
resigned.  There  is  no  record  of  his  resignation,  but  he  was  not  continued 
as  a  Charter  Trustee. 


172  CALENDAR'  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1775-1820.  JAMES  MADISON 

President  of  the  United  States.     Princeton,  1771. 

1775-1802.  JOHN  NASH 

Member,  House  of  Burgesses,  Prince  Edward 

County. 

1775-1804.  NATHANIEL  VENABLE 

Member,  House  of  Burgesses,  Prince  Edward 
County. 

1783-1802.  EVERARD  MEADE 

Harrow  School ;  Major,  Staff  of  Gen.  Benjamin 
Lincoln;  Member  of  the  Senate  (Virginia), 
Amelia  County. 

1783-1807.  JOEL  WATKINS 

Charlotte  County;  Colonel,  Charlotte  Militia, 
1780. 

1775-1795.  JAMES  VENABLE 

Prince  Edward  County;  removed  to  Kentucky. 

1775-1815.  FRANCIS  WATKINS 

Deputy  Clerk  and  Clerk,  Prince  Edward  County 
Court,  1767-1825. 

1775-1796.  JOHN  MORTON 

Captain,  Fourth  Virginia,  Continental  line. 
[Cf.     Virginia    Magazine    of    History,    XVIL 
305  f .] 

1782-1812,  WILLIAM  MORTON 

Charlotte  County;  Captain,  Charlotte  militia, 
1780-81. 

1775-1817.  THOMAS  READ 

Clerk,  Charlotte  County  Court;  Member,  Con- 
vention of  1776. 

[Cf.  Discourse  on  the  Virginia  Convention  of 
1776.    By  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby,  pp.  105-109] 

1782-1784.  WILLIAM  BOOKER 

Prince  Edward  County ;  Member,  Convention  of 
1776. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         173 


1782-1805.  THOMAS  SCOTT 

Member,  House  of  Burgesses,  Prince  Edward 
County. 

1782-1793.  JAMES  ALLEN 

Prince  Edward  County. 

1782-1816.  CHARLES  ALLEN 

Prince  Edward  County;  Treasurer  of  the  Col- 
lege. 

1782-1821.  SAMUEL  WOODSON  VENABLE 

Princeton,  1780;  War  of  the  Revolution;  mer- 
chant, Prince  Edward  County. 

1782-1795.  JOSEPH  PARKS 

Prince  Edward  County;  apparently  removed  to 
Georgia. 

1783-1810.  RICHARD  FOSTER 

Prince  Edward  County;  d.  1818. 

1775-1786.  PETER  JOHNSTON 

b.  Edinburgh,  Scotland;  member,  House  of 
Burgesses,  Prince  Edward  County;  donor  of 
the  first  College  land. 

1775-1789.  RICHARD  SANKEY 

b.  in  the  North  of  Ireland;  Presbyterian  minis- 
ter, Buffalo  Church,  Prince  Edward  County. 
[Cf.  Magazine,  XVII] 

1775-1793.  JOHN  TODD 

Princeton,    1749;   Presbyterian  minister,   Louisa 

County. 
[Cf.  Magazine,  XVII] 

1775-1783.  DAVID  RICE 

Princeton,  1761 ;  Presbyterian  minister;  removed 

to  Kentucky. 
[Cf.  History  of  Higher  Education  in  Kentucky. 

Bulletin,  Bureau  of  Education,  pp.  38,  39,  46, 

47-] 


174  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1775-1795.  ARCHIBALD  McROBERT 

b.  in  Scotland ;  minister,  Dale  Parish,  Chesterfield 
County,  and  St.  Patrick's  Parish,  Prince  Ed- 
ward County;  Independent  minister,  1779- 
1787;  Presbyterian  minister,  1787-1807.1 

1784 .  RICHARD  BIBB 

Prince  Edward  County. 

1784 .  I     WILLIAM  COWAN 

1790 .  )  Lunenburg  County. 

c.  1789-1792.  JOHN  FONTAINE 

Prince  Edward  County. 

c.  1790-1792.  JOSEPH  MOORE 

Prince  Edward  County. 

1790-1811.  ABRAHAM  B.  VENABLE 

Princeton,  1780;  United  States  Senate. 

c.  1791-1806.  JOHN  B.  SCOTT 

Prince  Edward  County,  and  Halifax  County; 
Marshal,  U.  S.  District  Court,  at  trial  of 
Aaron  Burr. 

1792-1835.  JAMES  MORTON 

Prince  Edward  County;  officer,  Fourth  Virginia, 
War  of  the  Revolution. 


aOf  the  twenty  seven  Charter  Trustees  above  listed  (given  in  the 
sequence  of  the  Charter),  Carrington,  Nash,  the  two  Venables,  Francis 
Watkins,  John  Morton,  Read,  Johnston,  Sankey,  and  Todd  were  original 
Academy  Trustees  appointed  by  the  Presbytery  of  Hanover  Feb.  2,  1775. 
Henry,  Cabell,  Madison,  Rice,  and  McRobert  were  added  by  the  Pres- 
bytery, Nov.  8,  1775  as  were  William  Morton,  Booker,   Scott,  the 

two  Aliens,  Samuel  W.  Venable,  and  Parks,  Dec.  19,  1782.  The  Board 
appointed  Meade,  Joel  Watkins,  and  Foster,  April  22,  1783.  Smith 
(Academy  Trustee  since  1779  ex  officio)  and  Lawson  were  included  at 
the  time  of  the  incorporation,  May,  1783.  The  Presbytery  had  waived  its 
right  of  appointment,  before  the  Charter. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         175 

1792-1839.  RICHARD  N.  VENABLE 

Princeton,  1782;  Prince  Edward  County;  Mem- 
ber, Convention  of  1829. 

1792-1812.  JOSEPH  VENABLE 

Princeton,  1783;  removed  to  Kentucky;  Judge. 

1795-1806.  ARCHIBALD  ALEXANDER 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 
Liberty  Hall  Academy,  1788. 

1795-1815.  JACOB  MORTON 

Charlotte  County ;  officer,  Charlotte  militia,  War 
of  the  Revolution. 

1795-1819.  CHARLES  SCOTT 

Prince  Edward  County  (and  Halifax  County?) 

1795-1836.  CLEMENT  CARRINGTON 

Hampden    Sidney    Academy,     1776;    Charlotte 

County. 
[Cf.  Virginia  Historical  Register.  II.  166] 

1796-1803.  ROBERT  L.  SMITH 

(A  brother  of  Samuel  Stanhope  and  John  Blair 
Smith ;  Physician,  Prince  Edward  County ;  re- 
moved from  the  State. 

1796-1827.  MATTHEW  LYLE 

Liberty  Hall  Academy,  c.  1788;  Presbyterian 
Minister,  Prince  Edward  County  (Buffalo 
and  Briery  churches). 

1803-1836.  GOODRIDGE  WILSON 

Physician,  Prince  Edward  County. 

1803-1814.  PAUL  CARRINGTON,  JR. 

Charlotte  County;  Judge,  General  Court. 

1803-1816.  DRURY  LACY 

Acting  President  of  the  College,  1789-1796; 
Presbyterian  minister,  Prince  Edward  County. 


176  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1803-1835.  WILLIAM  MORTON  WATKINS 

Hampden  Sidney  1791,  Princeton  1792;  Char- 
lotte County. 

1803-1823.  ISAAC  READ 

Charlotte  County. 

1805-1830.  JAMES  BRUCE 

Halifax  County. 

1807-1831.  JOHN  HOLT  RICE 

Liberty  Hall  Academy,  c.  1794;  Tutor  in  the 
College,  1796-1804;  organizer  of  Union  Theo- 
logical   Seminary,   Virginia. 

1807-1823.  WILLIAM  L.  VENABLE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1800;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1807-1831.  J    HENRY  E.  WATKINS 

1836-1853.  )  Princeton,  1801 ;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1807-1820.  MOSES  HOGE 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 
Liberty  Hall  Academy,  c.  1780. 

1809-1830.  WILLIAM  H.  CABELL 

Hampden  Sidney,  and  WUliam  and  Mary;  gov- 
ernor of  Virginia  &c. 

1812-1843.  WILLIAM  BERKELEY 

Prince  Edward  County;  Treasurer  of  Virginia, 
c.  1798. 

1812-1840.  JAMES  JONES 

Hampden  Sidney,  1791;  University  of  Edin- 
burgh (M.  D.),  1796;  Council  of  State,  and 
United  States  Congress;  Nottoway  County. 

1812-1827.  THOMAS  A.  MORTON 

Prince  Edward  County  and  Cumberland  County. 

1816-1837.  HENRY  A.  WATKINS 

Hampden  Sidney,  1793 ;  Charlotte  County. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         177 

1816-1820.  WILLIAM  S.  LACY 

Hampden  Sidney,  1811;  Presbyterian  minister, 

Arkansas, 
[cf .   Union  Seminary  Magazine,  IV,  75-83 ;  V, 

1-10.] 

1816-1865.  WILLIAM   S.   MORTON 

Hampden  Sidney  c.  1801 ;  Prince  Edward 
County  and  Cumberland  County;  Physician. 

1816-1844.  JAMES  H.  FITZGERALD 

Cumberland  County,  and  Fredericksburg, 
[cf.  Fbote's  Sketches  of  Virginia,  II,  594-596] 

1816-1824.  CARTER  PAGE 

William  and  Mary,  1772;  Cumberland  County. 

1819-1848.  JOHN  P.  WILSON 

Cumberland  County. 

1819 .  THOMAS  MILLER 

Powhatan  County. 

1819-1841.  JAMES  MADISON 

Prince  Edward  County. 

1820-1829.  WILLIAM  A.  CARRINGTON 

Charlotte  County. 

1820-1839.  WILLIAM  S.  ARCHER 

Hampden  Sidney,  c.  1805;  William  and  Mary; 
United  States  Senate;  Amelia  County. 

1820-1847.  SAMUEL  BRANCH 

Buchingham  County. 

1821-1850.  WILLIAM  S.  REID 

Princeton,  1802;  Tutor  in  the  College  and  acting 
President  (1806);  Presbyterian  minister, 
Lynchburg. 

1821-1835.  JONATHAN  P.  CUSHING 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 
Dartmouth,  181 7. 


178  CALENDAR  OF   BOARD   MINUTES. 

1823-1839.  HENRY   N.   WATKINS 

Hampden  Sidney,  1807 ;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1823-1830.  JOHN  MILLER 

Powhatan  County. 

1825-1850.  WILLIAM  NELSON  PAGE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1821 ;  Cumberland  County. 

1827-1847.  NATHANIEL  E.  VENABLE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1808;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1827-1846.  HENRY  CARRINGTON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1812;  Charlotte  County. 

1829-1840.  EDWARD  CODRINGTON  CARRINGTON 

Halifax  County. 

1830-1844.  WILLIAM  MYNN  THORNTON 

Cumberland  County. 

1830-1847.  WILLIAM  MAYO  ATKINSON 

Princeton,  1814;  Lawyer,  Petersburg;  Presby- 
terian minister   (1833-1849)   Winchester. 

1831-1839.  BENJAMIN  F.  STANTON 

Union  College,  181 1 ;  Presbyterian  minister, 
New  York,  Connecticut,  and  Prince  Edward 
County. 

1831-1865.  SAMUEL  CLOUGH  ANDERSON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1817;  Prince  Edward  County, 
[cf .  Dabney's  Discussions,  IV,  476-488] 

1831-1848.  ASA  DUPUY 

Prince  Edward  County. 

1835-1841.  GEORGE  MORTON  PAYNE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1814;  Buckingham  County. 

1835-1838.  DANIEL  LYNN  CARROLL 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 
Jefferson  College,  1823. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         179 

1836 Before  1849.  PAUL  S.  CARRINGTON 

Charlotte  County. 

1836-1844.  WILLIAM  MAXWELL 

Yale  1802;  Norfolk;  PRESIDENT  OF  THE 
COLLEGE  1838-1844;  Editor,  Virginia  His- 
torical Register. 

1837-1844.  JAMES  D.  WOOD 

Hampden  Sidney,  181 5;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1839-1844.  ISAAC  READ 

Hampden  Sidney,  1813;  Charlotte  County. 


i  THEODORICK  PRYOR 


1839-1847 
1858-1866 

Hampden   Sidney,   1826;   Presbyterian  minister, 
Nottoway  County. 


1839 .  Before  1849.  FRANCIS  B.  DEANE 

Hampden  Sidney,   1816;  Lynchburg. 

1839-1866.  JAMES  P.   MARSHALL 

Charlotte  County. 

1841-1847.  PATRICK  JONES  SPARROW 

Bethel  Academy,  South  Carolina,  c.  1819;  Pro- 
fessor, Davidson  College,  North  Carolina, 
1837-1840;  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COL- 
LEGE,  1845-1847;  Presbyterian  minister. 

1841-1877.  DAVID  COMFORT 

Princeton,  1826;  Charlotte  County.  (Born  in 
New  Jersey) 

1841-1847.  WILLIAM  SWAN  PLUMER 

Washington  College,  1825;  Presbyterian  minis- 
ter, Danville,  Charlotte  County,  Petersburg, 
Richmond,  Maryland,  Pennsylvania,  and 
South  Carolina. 

1841-1867.  JESSE  S.  ARMISTEAD 

Hampden  Sidney,  1823 ;  Presbyterian  minister, 
Cumberland  County. 


180  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1841-1851.  GEORGE  FITZGERALD 

Hampden  Sidney,  1827;  Nottoway  County; 
Physician. 

1842-1847.  JOHN  ANTHONY  SMITH 

Lunenburg  County. 

1844-1849.  WILLIAM  B.  SMITH 

[Hampden  Sidney,  c.  1804?] ;  Cumberland 
County;  Physician. 

1844-1867.  ISAAC  COLES  CARRINGTON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1830;  Charlotte  County. 

1844-1866.  JOHN  B.  McPHAIL 

Yale, ;  Halifax  County. 

1844-1870.  PEYTON  RANDOLPH  BERKELEY 

Hampden  Sidney,  1824;  Prince  Edward  County; 
Physician. 

1844-1853  I    FRANCIS  NATHANIEL  WATKINS 

1866-1885   )  Amherst,  1832;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1844-1849.  NATHANIEL  A.  VENABLE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1832;  Prince  Edward  County 
and  Lunenburg  County;  Physician. 

1844-1865.  COLIN  STOKES 

Lunenburg  County. 

1844-1850.  JOHN  LEYBURN 

Princeton,  1833;  Presbyterian  minister;  Secre- 
tary, Board  of  Publication  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church. 

1847-1855.  WILLIAM  H.  PATELLO 

Hampden  Sidney,  1834;  Charlotte  County;  Phy- 
sician. 

1847-1851.  SAMUEL  LYLE  GRAHAM 

Washington  College,  1814;  Professor,  Union 
Theological  Seminary. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         181 

1847-1852.  RICHARD  J.  H.  HATCHETT 

Hampden  Sidney,  1834;  Lunenburg  County; 
Physician. 

1847-1906.  ROBERT  C.  ANDERSON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1836;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1847-1884.  ASA  DUPUY  DICKINSON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1836 ;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1847-1856.  THOMAS   M.   BONDURANT 

Buckingham  County. 

1847-1865.  SAMUEL  DAVIES  STUART 

Centre  College,  Kentucky,  1833;  Princeton  Semi- 
nary 1838;  Presbyterian  minister,  Prince  Ed- 
ward County  &c. 

1848-1870.  TRAVIS  H.  EPES 

Nottoway  County. 

1848-1876.  ARCHIBALD  GRAHAM  McILWAINE 

Born  at  Londonderry,  Ireland ;  Petersburg. 

1849-1856.  LEWIS  WARNER  GREEN 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 
Centre,  1824. 

1849-1872.  THOMAS  E.  PERKINSON 

Prince  Edward  County. 

1849-1851.  S.  J.  P.  ANDERSON 

South  Hanover  College,  Indiana,  c.  1834;  Pres- 
byterian minister,  Norfolk  and  St.  Louis. 

1850-1866.  ALFRED  BOYD 

Mecklenburg  County. 

1850-1852.  SAMUEL  M.  McCORKLE 

Lynchburg. 

1851-1869.  WILLIAM  HENRY   FOOTE 

Yale,  1816;  Presbyterian  minister,  Romney. 
Virginia  [W.  Va]. 


i82  CALENDAR1  OF  BOARD  MINUTES.  "r~1  f 

1851-1859.  JOHN  THRUSTON    THORNTON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1842;  Prince  Edward  County; 
Lt.-Colonel  C.  S.  A.  (killed  at  Antietam— cf. 
Dabney's  Discussions,  IV,  453-469] . 

1851-1867.  EDWIN  G.  BOOTH 

Nottoway  County. 

1852-1857.  HENRY  FLOOD  BOCOCK 

Washington  College,  1841;  Appomattox  County. 

1852-1899.  MOSES  DRURY  HOGE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1839;  Presbyterian  minister, 
Richmond. 

1852-1858  THOMAS   STANHOPE    FLOURNOY 

Hampden  Sidney,  183 1 ;  Halifax  County. 

.1853-1867.  STEPHEN  O.  SOUTHALL 

f^*Bw  Hampden      Sidney,      1835;      Prince      Edward 

I      ^>^;^(  County;  after  1867,  Professor,  University  of 

I       "^SfeP**  Virginia. 

1854-1867.  GEORGE  D.  ARMSTRONG 

Princeton,  1832 ;  Professor  Washington  Col- 
lege; Presbyterian  minister,  Norfolk. 

1855-1874.  ROBERT  A.  PATTERSON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1848;  Lunenburg  County; 
Physician. 

1857-1883.  JOHN  MAYO  PLEASANTS  ATKINSON 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  COLLEGE.  \\ 

Hampden  Sidney,  1835. 

1858-1900.  HENRY  STOKES 

University  of  Virginia;  Prince  Edward  County. 

1858-1867.  FRANCIS  BENJAMIN  WATKINS 

Hampden  Sidney,  1834;  Prince  Edward  County 
&c;  Physician. 

1858-1885.  THOMAS  T.  TREDWAY 

Hampden  Sidney,  1838;  Prince  Edward  County. 


THE  COLLEGE  OF  HAMPDEN-SIDNEY.         183 

1866-1870.  JOHN    FINLEY    McILWAINE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1858;  Petersburg. 

1866-1868.  ROBERT  A.  LANCASTER 

Richmond. 

1866-1868.  JOHN  W.  WILSON 

Washington  College,  1848;  Pittsylvania  County. 

1866-1879.  JOHN  N.  FLOOD 

Lynchburg. 

1866-1885.  FRANCIS  DEANE  IRVING 

Hampden  Sidney,  1839;  Cumberland  County 
and  Prince  Edward  County. 

1866-1895.  HENRY  S.  REYNOLDS 

Hampden  Sidney,  1857;  Norfolk. 

1867-1873.  ROBERT  LEWIS   DABNEY 

University  of  Virginia,  1842;  Professor,  Union 
Theological  Seminary. 

1867-1904.  ALEXANDER  W.  PITZER 

Hampden  Sidney,  1854;  Presbyterian  minister, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

1867-1900.  WILLIAM  WIRT  HENRY 

University  of  Virginia,  1850;  Charlotte  County 
and  Richmond;  President,  American  Histori- 
cal Association  &c. 

1867-1905.  P.  B.  PRICE 

Presbyterian  minister,  Botetourt  County. 

1867-1881.  WILLIAM  L.  STAMPS 

University  of  North  Carolina,  1836;  Milton, 
North  Carolina ;  Physician. 

1867-1897.  SAMUEL   WOODSON   VENABLE 

Hampden  Sidney,  1842;  Petersburg. 

1868-1869.  JAMES  McCHAIN 

Presbyterian  minister,  Abingdon. 


184  CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

1869-1879.  DANIEL  B.  EWING 

Marion  College,  Missouri,  1843;  Presbyterian 
minister,  Virginia,  West  Virginia,  and  Ken- 
tucky. 

1870-1904.  RICHARD  McILWAINE 

Hampden  Sidney.  1853 ;  University  of  Virginia, 
and  University  of  Edinburgh;  PRESIDENT 
OF  THE  COLLEGE,  1883-1904. 

1870-1898.  JOHN  PATERSON  FITZGERALD 

Hampden  Sidney,  1857;  Lieut.  Colonel,  C.  S. 
A.,  Prince  Edward  County. 

1870-1891.  CHARLES    SCOTT   CARRINGTON 

Hampden  Sidney,  1839;  Richmond;  Major,  C. 
S.  A. 

1870 .  THOMAS  WILLIAMSON  HOOPER 

Hampden  Sidney,  1855;  Presbyterian  minister, 
Christianburg  &c. 

1870-1872.  ABNER  CRUMP  HOPKINS 

Hampden  Sidney,  1855;  C.  S.  A.,  Presbyterian 
minister,  Charlestown,  West  Virginia. 

1871-1903.  GEORGE  W.   FINLEY 

Washington  College,  1858;  Captain,  C.  S.  A., 
Presbyterian  minister,  Romney,  West  Vir- 
ginia. 

1873-1874.  JOSEPH  CLOYD 

Pulaski  County. 

1873-1912.  MATTHEW  LYLE  LACY 

4  Hampden  Sidney,  1853 ;  Presbyterian  minister,, 

Lewisburg,  West  Virginia. 


TOPICAL   INDEX 

Absenteeism,  43,  44. 

advertisement,  48,  49,  76,  83,  84,  104,  146,  161. 

alumni  catalogue,  125,  139,  165. 

alumni  society,  142,  158. 

amusements,  42,  49,  50,  53,  58,  63,  92,  158. 

apparatus,  54,  55,  7h  72,  87,  112,  115,  125,  138. 

Appomattox  lands,  61,  62. 

Belfry,  103. 

bell,  59,  60,  64,  107. 

Church,  72,  85. 

church  affiliations,  123,  124,  126,  160,  162,  164* 

Cincinnati  Society,  56,  131. 

civil  war,  148,  149,  150,  151,  152. 

Common  Hall,  31,  32,  35. 

costume,  29,  105. 

curatorship,  26,  35,  47,  71,  105,  124,  127,  139,  154. 

curriculum,  29,  33,  35,  66,  70,  72,  73,  83,  91,  93,  94,  98,  113,  123,  127,  132,  134- 

Damages,  41,  43,  71  • 

dining  room,  24,  32,  91,  92. 

diplomas,  32,  33,  66,  113. 

disorders,  59,  60,  61,  64,  68,  71,  97,  127,  144. 

Escheats,  37,  40  43,  56,  65,  67. 

embellishments,    122. 

endowment  (permanent  fund),  58,  71,  82,  101,  102,  119,  122,  133,  145,  147, 

148,  150,  155,  161,  164,  165,  166,  168,  169. 

Faculty,  25,  29,  32,  33,  34,  36,  38,  40,  41,  42,  45,  46,  49,  54,  57,  61,  62, 
69,  72,  75,  88,  89,  95,  96,  98,  101,  103,  104,  105,  106,  107,  108,  115, 
116,  119,  120,  122,  123,  126,  128,  132,  134,  136,  139,  141,  143,  144,  145, 

149,  151,  152,  154,  155,  156,  159,  167. 
fire  insurance,  56,  86,  144. 

fives,  50,  53- 

King's  Tavern  (French's  Store),  33,  34,  43,  47,  69,  71,  92,  96,  103,  108,  112, 
138,  148. 

Gaming,  47. 

grammar  school  (academy,  preparatory  department),  64  70,  73,  93,  122, 
131,   132,   137,  140,   152. 

Hampden  Memorial,   128-130. 
history,  26,  99,  159,  167. 

James  River  Navigation  stock,  45. 

Laws  and  ordinances,  29  ff.,  42,  43,  48,  53,  59,  60,  63,  64,  66,  68,  75,  92, 

99,  101,  121,  132,  138,  139,  153,  156. 
Library,  27,  28,  39,  48,  55,  60,  71,  75,  86,  87,  113,  "9,  133,  148. 
lottery,  23,  26,  27,  34,  47- 


186      CALENDAR  OF  BOARD  MINUTES. 

Manual  labour,  113. 

Medical  Department,  118,  121,  126,  134,  140,    141. 

memorials  to  the  Legislature,  20,  26,  27,  28,  37,  38,  40,  47,  48,  50,  62,  69, 

70,  74,  81  ff.,  88,  98,  99,  102,  109  ff.,  116,  132,  134,  136,  139,  142,  157, 

160. 
Mineralogical  Society  of  Virginia,  114. 

New  College,  86,  91,  96,  101. 

Prayers,  30,  155. 

President's  house,  38,  101,  103,  137. 

price  of  boarding,  24,  33,  47,  58,  70,  96,  101,  142,  145- 

Repairs,  35,  43,  48,  49,  53,  58,  60,  64,  65,  96,  105,  124,  132,  146,  154- 
room  rents,  26,  27,  28,  34,  72,  92,  146. 

Salary,  46,  47,  48,  52,  55,  61,  62,  72,  76,  92,  97,  100,  103,  107,  112,  115,  118, 

119,  123,  125,  129,  135,  141,  142,  153,  155,  159. 
scholarships,  133,  134,  135,  136,  137,  138,  139,  141,  144,  145,  146,  153,  155. 

156,  158,  165,  166. 
seal,  32. 

sectarianism,  37,  38,  42. 
servants,  65,  72,  139,  152. 
sessions,  91,  133. 
steward,  22,  24,  25,  26,  27,  31,  38,  44,  47,  49,  68,  87,  88,  96,  101,  104,  105, 

116,  119,  124,  131,  138,  149,  153. 
subscriptions,  32,  33,  35,  39,  40,  42,  49,  58,  64,  65,  70,  73,  74,  84,  96,  100, 

101,  113,  121,  125. 

Theological  School,  61,  62,  68,  70,  83,  97,  100. 

tuition  money,  22,  31,  36,  37,  46,  48,  55,  64,  73,  125,  132,  152,  160. 

University  and  Colleges,  87-90,  147. 

Vice  President's  house,  70,  71. 
Valedictory,  50. 


